


The Wisdom of Children

by TunaFishChris



Series: Peter & Wanda BFFs [1]
Category: Spider-Man - All Media Types, The Amazing Spider-Man (Movies - Webb), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Cultural Differences, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Friendship, Gen, Injury, Insecurity, Kidnapping, Misunderstandings, My First Fanfic, Post-Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-29
Updated: 2016-08-02
Packaged: 2018-07-27 13:06:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 27,346
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7619278
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TunaFishChris/pseuds/TunaFishChris
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nobody's thrilled at the idea of "that kid" Peter Parker on the Avengers team. </p><p>Nobody's thrilled at the idea of "that weirdo" Wanda Maximoff on the team, either. </p><p>Until they disappear, that is. </p><p>Or, the one where Peter and Wanda are besties and the other Avengers are jerks until they realize how important and awesome they both are.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [The Darkest of our Days](https://archiveofourown.org/works/729261) by [DarkMoonMaiden](https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkMoonMaiden/pseuds/DarkMoonMaiden). 



> First fanfic here, so be gentle. :)
> 
> This one kind of ignores Civil War and mixes things up with Age of Ultron. Everything in AoU that happened happened, but they're all living at the Tower instead of the facility, Thor is sticking around on Earth, and they managed to convince Bruce to come back after a while. 
> 
> Also, while I know Amazing Spider-Man 2 took place right after Peter's senior year in high school, I'm basically pushing those events back to his junior year (re: he's still in high school, but Gwen is dead). 
> 
> Enjoy! :)

“How many DoomBot attacks does it take to successfully take over a city?” Peter asked, webbing up his latest catch of evil robots. 

“Well, they say the twenty-ninth time’s the charm,” Tony replied over the coms. In the distance, Peter could hear the suit’s machine-gun fire take out a fresh row of robots. “Still haven’t found Doom.” 

“Same,” Natasha said. She was behind the computers at Avengers Tower, trying to find the source of the robots’ commands. (Martial arts without super-strength didn’t mix well with robots.) 

“Keep looking,” Steve huffed. Peter couldn’t see him; too many buildings and robots between him and the captain. But while he seemed a bit winded, he didn’t sound like he was in trouble, so Peter kept focusing on the robots. 

“Need a little help, kid?” Clint asked. His voice was flat and toneless, completely different from when he talked to the other Avengers. Peter supposed he was just special that way. 

“Nah, I’m good,” he said, kneeing another robot’s head off. 

In truth, he was getting a bit tired. They’d been at this for two hours with no apparent end in sight. He’d had a full day of school and had another one tomorrow, and at this rate he’d be lucky if he got three hours of sleep. But he wasn’t going to tell any of them _that_.

Peter felt a familiar tickle in the back of his mind and grinned. A half a dozen robots that had been firing at him (and missing; he was too fast) suddenly exploded in red. 

Wanda telekinetically picked up their metal bodies and chucked them at the next set of robots, while Peter went around and started webbing up some new targets for her. 

“I thought Vision was your favorite fighting-buddy,” Peter said, flipping through a half-constructed building to get more robots. “Are you cheating on him with l’il ol’ me?” 

“He started it,” Wanda said. “He’s playing catch with Thor.” 

Out of the corner of his eye, Peter could see the thunder god and Vision tossing the giant hammer back and forth, destroying any and all enemies between them. 

“As I explained before, dear,” Vision said, a slight tilt in the British accent giving away the fact that he was teasing, “a man needs time with his friends.” 

Wanda chuckled, tearing apart a webbed-up robot with a snap of her fingers. “Admit it: you just don’t love me anymore.” 

“That, too.” 

Wanda gave a mock-scandalized look while Tony laughed. “Oh, ouch, Vision!” 

“Don’t worry,” Peter said, swinging onto the next batch of robots. “They only do this for the amazing make-up sex.” 

“Jeez, really, kid?” Clint scolded. “Now’s not the time.” 

“Agreed,” Steve said. “You’re a minor, anyway.” 

“Only for three more days!” Peter cheered. 

“We’ll have to go to Europe to celebrate,” Wanda said, tossing a bunch of robots into a massive web Peter had set up between two buildings. “Hungary, maybe, or Amsterdam.” 

“Why?” 

“Because you’ll be legal drinking age over there.” 

“This is true…” 

“Oh, like that’d actually stop you from getting a drink over here,” Tony said. Peter couldn't see him, but there was a small explosion a few blocks over that marked his location. 

“Excuse me, Mr. Stark, I am a model citizen,” Peter protested. He ignored the twinge of guilt he felt at Tony’s words because…well, the man had an extensive alcohol collection. He hadn’t even noticed the bottle of vodka that went missing around Wanda’s birthday, or the brandy that had vanished for Aunt May’s. 

“As advertised by the vigilantism,” Tony said. 

“And the mask,” Thor grumbled. 

“And the sex jokes,” Clint added. 

“Found him!” Wanda cheered. 

Peter breathed a quiet sigh of relief. Tony had been teasing, but Thor and Clint were not. They’d made it clear since Day One that they did not want Peter on the team (so had Natasha, and Bruce did his darnedest to avoid him, and Steve was constantly on Peter’s case about building up more muscle and improving his fighting style…)

“Where?” Steve demanded. 

Wanda’s eyes were bright red. “Two blocks east from you, Captain, top floor. It’s the building with the Starbucks.” 

“Tony, with me,” Steve said. “And Wanda, what’d I tell you about using telepathy on your teammates?” 

Wanda’s eyes immediately went dark as she cringed. “Sorry,” she mumbled. 

Peter rolled his eyes and, when Wanda was looking at him, put two fingers to his lips before flicking them down (the ASL sign for “read”). Wanda’s eyes went red again, and Peter felt that familiar tickle. 

_*You know he’s just jealous, because he can’t do more than “Steve Smash,” right? If he had telepathy, we’d never get him out of our heads.*_

Wanda gave a weak smile. She kept the telepathic link strong as they both went back to work. 

Peter got it, okay? The team wasn’t too keen on Wanda’s mind-powers after the whole Ultron thing--it’d taken them months to convince Bruce to come back after the shit-show that was Wakanda. But how else was she going to direct Steve to the bad guy without at least getting a read on where he was? That wasn’t even mind reading, that was “looking through their eyes,” as Wanda put it. Being able to see and hear what that person was seeing and hearing. 

Come to think of it, that did sound a bit like mind reading. 

Whatever. Wanda was on their side, she felt guilty enough about the rough start without them adding to it, and she never read a person’s thoughts or set up a telepathic link or any of that crap without explicit permission. Or if they were in a life-or-death situation, like that one time a building had collapsed on Vision; telepathy had been the only way they knew he was alive. 

The robots all froze, then collapsed on the street. 

Clint whooped. “All right, Cap!” 

“That was Tony, actually,” Steve said. “He’s the one who took out Doom and shut down the bots. I was pinned under a beam for most of the fight.” 

“We toil in the fields while you take a coffee break?” Peter mock-gasped. “Captain America!” 

“That wasn’t his fault, Parker, and you know it,” Natasha said, a bit of snap to her voice. 

Peter rolled his eyes under his mask. “It was a joke. I thought people weren’t supposed to take teenagers seriously.” 

_*They don’t,*_ Wanda grumbled in his mind. _*We’re just children who need to be scolded and told what to do.*_

__

__

_*That’s the spirit, Wanda,*_ Peter said with another eye-roll. He didn’t point out the fact that Wanda wasn’t a teenager, not since her twentieth birthday last month. Everyone in the team still treated her like a kid. 

_*That’s the truth.*_

Vision landed gracefully next to Wanda and put a hand on her shoulder. She cut the mental link between her and Peter, their thoughts their own again. Which was fine by Peter, because Wanda got so moony around Vision, even though they’d been dating for five months now. And after an intense battle such as this, those thoughts took an R-rated turn.

“SHIELD has the clean-up,” Steve said. “Let’s get back to the Tower for debrief.” 

Peter bit back a groan. He wasn’t going to get any sleep tonight. 

Wanda gave him a worried look. He shrugged and forced a grin under his mask. “Last one to the Tower’s a rotten egg, ready set go!” 

“Hey!” Wanda protested as Peter jumped and zipped between the buildings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://christinamariedza.blogspot.com/p/published-works.html


	2. II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A typical day at school...

Peter kept his head down and the hood of his sweater up as he went to and from classes the next day. There were bags under his eyes from the lack of sleep and bruises all over his body. He'd loaded up on espresso that morning, but now that it was almost lunch he was crashing hard. 

So he could be forgiven for mistaking the low hum of his Spidey senses as just another part of his growing headache, and being caught completely off-guard when his textbooks were yanked from his arms and went crashing to the floor. 

"Watch it, Parker!" Flash barked. He punched Peter in the shoulder as he walked past. Peter bit back a gasp; that was a little too close to one of his fresh bruises. He picked up his scattered books and papers and went to class, and didn't say a word. 

He didn't say a word when one of Flash's friends threw meatballs at the back of his head during lunch. 

He didn't say a word when he saw his locker had been defaced by cruel words carved out by Sharpie. 

He didn't say a word during the long walk home, alone. 

\--

Wanda and Vision officially lived at Avengers Tower with the rest of the team, but like everyone else they had an apartment elsewhere in the city for when they wanted some personal space. 

Right now, that apartment was used only by Peter. 

It was a cozy little thing, nothing extravagant or luxurious. If you stood at the edge of the kitchen table, you could see into all four rooms: kitchen, living room, bathroom, and bedroom. There was a fire escape that led directly to the roof. Peter saw the tent and sleeping bags messily folded up in one of the shelves in the living room and smiled. When Wanda had found out Peter had never been camping before, they'd set up a camp site on the roof of the apartment building, complete with a tiny bonfire for s'mores and a flashlight for ghost stories. (She'd done it with Vision, too, since he was less than a year old and thus had a lot of catching up to do, but Peter did not need to hear any of those details.)

Peter had just dropped his backpack on the floor and was debating whether to eat something or crash on the sofa for a while, when his phone rang. 

He yawned before he answered, making sure his voice sounded normal and chipper. "Hello?" 

"It's Wanda," she said. "I wanted to let you know that Fury's calling a meeting tonight." 

Peter sighed. "What time?" 

"Seven." 

He looked at the clock. Four hours from now. "What about?" 

"I don't know, but I overheard something about Sergeant Barnes." 

Peter winced. He'd joined the Avengers after the whole SHIELD-is-actually-Hydra thing and supposedly-dead James Barnes turning out to be an immortal super-assassin, but he'd been around long enough to know that when it came to the search for his best friend, Steve was borderline obsessed. 

"Thanks for the heads up," Peter said, rubbing his eyes. Sofa, definitely, after this phone call. He'd stop by a gas station or something and pick up a snack on the way to the Tower. 

Wanda hesitated. Then, "I think this'll be a good time for you to tell them about your aunt." 

"No," Peter said firmly. 

"She kicked you out because she doesn't know about Spider-Man," Wanda said. "Fury can lift SHIELD's orders and let you tell her." 

"Wanda, I didn't tell her about Spider-Man even before joining the Avengers, and I don't plan on doing it now. She worries too much as it is, and knowing about my identity is dangerous." Far too dangerous. Gwen's face flashed behind his eyelids. 

"So it's better for her to worry about the unknown, assuming her nephew is involved in drugs or gangs or whatever it is she thinks, than for her to know for certain what it is you're doing and that you have a team who has your back?" Wanda pointed out. 

Peter snorted, his bitterness bleeding through his fatigue. "A) it's better for her to not know that I'm fighting robots and sorcerers and aliens every week in addition to my usual car thieves, muggers, and gangsters. B) You might have my back, Wanda, and maybe Vision does, too. Don't pretend the others give a damn." 

"Maybe not," Wanda agreed, "but all of the Avengers have an apartment here, a place to live and be on call, except you. If you tell them about your situation, they'll let you stay there." 

"You don't have a place there, either, Wanda. You share Vision's." 

"...true." 

Peter swallowed. "If you're just trying to tell me to leave your apartment, that's fine. I'll find somewhere else--"

"That is _not_ what I'm saying!" Wanda snapped. "I'm not letting you live on the street. I meant what I said before: you're like a brother to me. I'm simply telling you that you have other options." 

Peter winced. Wanda did not say that brother part without really meaning it. He'd never met Pietro Maximoff, but he knew what'd happened to him. Wanda had actually avoided Peter for weeks when he'd first joined the Avengers before finally approaching him with a mumbled apology and an explanation: Peter reminded her of Pietro, a lot. Even their names sounded similar, and they had similar tastes in bad jokes and being a smartass...

But they were also very different, and Peter--who knew exactly what it was like to be reminded of a dead loved one so soon after their death--capitalized on that whenever he could. He showed her around New York, introduced her to fresh new foods and card games, took her to bad movies, anything new that had no ties to memories of Pietro were good. And when he let Wanda tinker around his head while she was flexing her telepathy muscles (an activity the other Avengers absolutely refused to help her with, discouraged her from doing, and didn't know that Peter volunteered), they'd found out that Peter's mind and Pietro's mind had two completely different "flavors" (that was the word Wanda had used). That had ended the sad, almost wistful smiles Wanda would give Peter and replaced them with genuine happiness and laughter. It had also been when Wanda had first told Peter that she loved at him like a brother. And Peter loved her like a sister. 

"Just think about it," Wanda said, pulling Peter back to the present. "And maybe think about online school...?" 

"No," Peter said, more tired this time. "I need something normal in my life." 

"Online school is perfectly normal. And I know you have bullies, and you barely get enough sleep trying to make it to school on time..." 

"I need a place to just be Peter," he confessed. "I can't...everywhere else is either Spider-Man or a mix, and I can't do that. I need some kind of...anchor, I guess." 

Wanda was silent for a while, then she sighed. "All right. Get some sleep; you sound exhausted. I'll come over around 6:30 and we'll get something to eat on the way." 

"Wanda, you're a goddess. Thank you," Peter said, before they hung up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	3. III

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The two youngest Avengers go missing.

"Where's your girlfriend, Vision?" Clint asked when he walked into the meeting room and saw they were down two kids. 

"She went to pick up Peter," Vision said, not looking up from the book he'd brought along. "They'll be here shortly." 

"Those two spend a lot of time together," Tony commented, leaning so far back in his chair the front two legs were swinging in the air. "Aren't you worried?" 

Vision gave Tony a look. "Of course not." 

"Sounding pretty confident there. You know Spidey's rated #2 on the Sexy Avenger Poll? Right behind Natasha." 

"There's a Sexy Avenger Poll?" Clint asked the same time Natasha muttered, "Must be the spandex." 

"Bet that number would drop like a rock if people knew he wasn't even eighteen," Clint said, with no small amount of bitterness. He sat next to Natasha, who was on her laptop. 

"I wouldn't bet on it," she said. 

That made for some uncomfortable imagery. Bruce must've picked up on it, too, because he changed to topic to some science-related thing happening in the labs. 

It wasn't that Clint didn't care about the kid. He did. Nat did, too. And they didn't want to see a damn teenager flinging himself at danger just because he could stick to walls. Wanda was barely tolerable, and only because she didn't really have anything or anywhere else. Peter, though, he had a family, school, college to look forward to. He'd dropped off the grid for a few months right after his junior year and the world hadn't exploded. He should shelf the Spider-Man thing for a few years, when he was actually old enough to make a smart decision about it. 

The clock had just hit seven when Nick Fury came into the room. He sat at the head of the table and frowned, glaring with his one eye. "Parker and Maximoff?" 

"Should walk in any second now," Tony said.

"We're not waiting on them. There's been a sighting of the Winter Soldier in Romania. We think there's a Hydra base there."

The meeting centered on Barnes. Steve and Fury did most of the talking. Fifteen, thirty minutes passed and nobody else came. Out of the corner of Clint's eye, he could see Vision frowning, and checking his phone to make sure he hadn't missed any messages. 

_Kids,_ Clint thought. _They never believe in being on time._

He was two minutes from calling the kids up himself when Maria Hill rushed into the room. 

"This is a private meeting, Hill," Fury said. 

"And this is an urgent matter," she retorted. "Maximoff and Parker have been kidnapped."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	4. IV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The search begins.

_Last week…_

“That was really cool.” 

Natasha looked up from the villain she had in a choke-hold with her legs. Parker was webbing up another henchman while looking at her. “Can you show me how you do that?”

Natasha gave him a look. This was not the first time he'd asked her to teach him some of her moves. Why couldn't boys ever take "no" for an answer? “This isn’t middle school, and I’m not a teacher. Practice your moves in your own time.” 

Parker’s shoulders hunched, just a fraction, before he covered the movement with a stretch. “Fair enough. I get that you’re busy.” 

“Aw, I guess you're going home alone tonight," one of the downed villains sneered. "Who knew Spider-Man struck out like everyone else?" 

Parker sputtered. “Are you kidding me? You understand what black widow spiders _do_ to their mates, right?” 

The villain frowned. “Uh…” 

“The female black widow eats her mate alive. During sex.” 

The villain blanched and looked up at Natasha. “Uh…” 

Natasha raised an eyebrow at him. “I’m willing if you are.” 

Parker almost fell over laughing. One of the henchmen took advantage of the distraction and made a break for it. 

Parker shot a web at the henchman’s feet, and he fell flat on his face, his legs stuck to the ground. Parker was still giggling. “Hey, come on. Don’t you want to meet Captain America? He really wants to meet you.” 

Natasha glared at Parker. She waited until the suspects were all in cuffs and being driven off to SHIELD before pulling him aside. “These aren’t low-level thugs and car thieves we’re dealing with, Parker. When we’re on a job, act like it’s a job. No more childish games.” 

Parker tipped his head. Natasha wanted to yank that mask off of his face so she could pick up his facial cues. 

“Why?” he asked. “The bad guys get sent to jail either way. Why not try to have some fun while we do it?" 

"One of them almost got away because of your distraction."

"Except he didn't." 

"And you had at least half a dozen close calls during the shoot-out. Too close." She yanked on his arm, showing him where one of the bullets had grazed him, ripping his suit and staining it with blood. 

"Aw, man," Parker whined, noticing it for the first time. "I just fixed this thing..." 

Natasha wanted to slap him. She came very close. She grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled so they were eye-to-eye. "This. Is not. A game," she gritted out. "One day a bullet will hit somewhere fatal. One day the bad guy will get away. One day innocent people will die on _your_ watch and it will eat you alive. Sort yourself out, or people get killed." 

Parker didn't try to fight her, or pull away. He just looked at her and said, softly, "I know." 

\--

_Now._

__

__

_Dammit, boy. You should've walked away when you had the chance,_ Natasha thought, watching Maria Hill pull up the footage of the kidnapping. 

Vision was sitting stiff as a board in his seat. He hadn't moved a muscle since Hill's announcement. Natasha allowed herself to feel bad for him for a moment before returning to the task at hand. 

Steve was pacing at the back of the room, his mind pulled from _Bucky_ to _Peter and Wanda_ in a heartbeat. Tony was frantically typing on his phone, probably hacking something to help with the search. Bruce, Thor, and Clint were twitching in their seats, itching for a lead or something to do. 

"Why would someone take the youngest?" Thor asked, his hands flexing around his hammer. "Do they mean to use them for ransom against us?" 

"Maybe," Natasha said. "But if they wanted ransom, they could've taken somebody less risky. Pepper, maybe. Or Jane Foster." 

"Or Peter's aunt, what's-her-name," Tony said. 

"No, nobody would go after her," Natasha said. 

"...oh, yeah, secret identity. I keep forgetting about that." 

Thor blinked. Natasha studied his face, intrigued. That wasn't the face he had when introduced to a new Midguardian wonder (such as phones or Pop-Tarts), or a strange custom. He looked like...he'd just had some sort of epiphany. 

"Here it is," Hill said, and the room went quiet. 

On screen was security footage from a park, from a SHIELD agent assigned to trailing and keeping an eye on the Avengers when they were out and about. (Not that all of the Avengers knew about that. Parker certainly didn't, and Maximoff probably didn't, either.)

Maximoff and Parker were sitting on a park bench, in clear view of the agent, who was sitting under a shady tree just a few yards away, probably "reading a book" that had a tiny camera in the spine. 

Parker was sucking down a Starbucks drink while Maximoff nibbled on a muffin. Parker's shirt had crumbs on it, indicating that he'd just eaten. They were in civilian clothes, Maximoff in a hoodie to hide her hair and face. Just another couple in the park as the sun set. The time stamp said it was 6:39, barely an hour ago. 

"Is it normal for them to be together like this?" Fury asked. 

"Very," Hill said. "They've been almost inseparable for the last three and a half months." 

"So, six month anniversary coming up," Parker was saying, finishing his drink and tossing it in the trash. "Any plans?" 

Everyone in the room tried very hard not to look at Vision. He still hadn't moved. 

"No idea," Maximoff confessed. "I might cook something." 

"You know, when a guy's trying to impress a girl, _he_ usually cooks for _her_ ," Parker said. 

Maximoff's eyes went comically wide. "That is _not_ happening. The last time he tried, the kitchen blew up." 

Parker snorted. When Maximoff's expression didn't change, he blinked. "You're serious." 

"I am." 

"Like, the kitchen was just a mess blew up, or..." 

"There was a genuine explosion and a fire in his apartment. Extinguishers were used. He is never allowed in the kitchen again." 

Parker bowled over laughing, almost falling off of the bench, while Maximoff went on with her horror story with a smile. They looked so carefree and...happy. Normal. 

Clint covered his mouth with his fist, as if he was deep in thought. To Natasha, he whispered, "Parker would look like that a lot more if he wasn't Spider-Man." 

She gave a slight nod of agreement. 

Parker pulled out his phone, still chuckling. "We should probably get going. Don't want Fury to get...well, furious." 

"That joke was bad the first time you used it," Maximoff said as they stood and started walking. "And the time after that, and the time after that..." 

"You're crazy. That is the height of humor, one of my finest jokes. In fact, I'm going to open up a comedy club just for SHIELD and the Avengers, and that'll be the opening--"

It happened in seconds. 

A dart was shot into Maximoff's neck. She only had enough time to pull it out and realize what was happening before she collapsed. With lightning-fast reflexes, Parker caught her before she hit the pavement and crouched over her, protecting her with his body. 

Without the mask, Natasha had a clear view of his face. She wondered if he always had that mixture of fury and fear whenever he went into a fight. 

A dozen people disguised as civilians in the park turned on them. The SHIELD agent was taken out just as he was drawing his gun, but he fell in such a way that the camera's lobsided angle still caught Parker's fight. And he put up a damn good fight. He had his web-shooters on, hidden beneath his sweater, and caught the kidnappers completely off-guard. He webbed up two, snapped a third one's ribs, webbed a fourth, kicked a fifth to the ground so hard his skull cracked...he probably would've been able to take them all down, if the original shooter hadn't had a second dart. 

It got him in the arm. Parker wobbled on his feet and muttered, "Ah, shit," before he fell.

"Boss only said he wanted the girl," one of the men said, struggling to get out of the webs. "What about him?" 

"That's Spider-Man, you idiot," another said. "We take them both." 

And both were bundled up into nearby vans and driven away. The screen went black. 

"Any witnesses?" Steve asked. 

"Someone caught the fight on their camera-phone. We grabbed it before he could upload it anywhere," Hill said. "Agents are analyzing it now." 

"They didn't know about Parker," Natasha said. "They were after Maximoff, and thought he was just an ordinary civilian." 

"So they'll have facilities capable of keeping Scarlet Witch, but not necessarily Spider-Man," Bruce said. His brown eyes had a hint of green in them, but otherwise he was fine. 

"Go back to eight seconds before the end," Clint said. "I think I saw something." 

Hill pulled up the footage again, at the exact time Clint specified. He pointed inside the van, just by the open door. "There." 

Hill zoomed in. Steve sucked in a breath while Tony swore. 

It was a Hydra symbol.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	5. V

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things get tense as the hours trickle by, and still no sign of the missing Avengers...

_5 months ago..._

"...and this is the general floor, for all your movie night, midnight snacking and post-battle crashing needs," Tony said, stepping into the living room of the general floor. 

Peter gave a low whistle, looking around. "Damn, Mr. Stark, this is pretty sweet." 

"Okay, first of all, no Mr. Stark nonsense. It's Tony, Iron Man, or The Best, Most Awesome Avenger." 

Peter smirked. "Sorry, Tony, pretty sure that spot's reserved for the captain." 

Tony gaped at him. "Really?! I'm standing _right here_!" 

"Banner's a close second. You're number three." 

"Wow, so rude. Just for that, you're getting the static-y earpiece," Tony warned. "Second of all, and it kills me to say this given the recent discovery of your true allegiance: what's mine is yours. You can stay here if you want, crash here at any time. I know you've got another place, but..." 

"Maybe," Peter said carefully. "Can't have too many sleepovers, or Aunt May'll get suspicious." 

"Hope you've got a loose curfew. Or, just tell her you have a girlfriend." 

Tony didn't see the way Peter winced at his words. He clapped Peter on the shoulder and steered him out of the room, back into the elevator. "One last thing. I know you've got to get to school and whatnot, gotta show the science teachers how it's done..." 

Peter snorted. 

"...but I have here a little welcome-to-the-boy-band present." Tony handed Peter the rolled-up cloth he'd kept in his hand during the tour. 

Peter unfurled it and laughed. "Seriously, dude?" 

"Superheroes are the new superstars," Tony said, watching Peter's eyes light up as he took in the design of the Spider-Man t-shirt. "Believe me when I say that was not the cheesiest shirt out there." 

"Wait, you actually bought this?" Peter asked, looking up. "I thought you'd, like, designed it or printed it out or..." 

"No, no. Amazon. I think they're selling them in Target, too. I considered getting the action figure, but you seem a bit old for dolls." Tony tipped his head. "You actually didn't know?" 

Peter shook his head, carefully folding the t-shirt. He was blushing. "Didn't think Spider-Man had so many fangirls." 

Now that was the craziest thing Tony had ever heard. Spider-Man's fan base was almost as big as all the Avengers' _combined_. It was the only reason the team had been able to convince the city to allow him onto the team rather than throw him behind bars. And when the team had been debating whether or not to let him join, FRIDAY had pulled up the stats: crime in NYC went down like a rock when Spider-Man was out and about. He may have been young and unorthodox, but the kid got results. 

"Well, there's more where that came from, in case you need a new wardrobe," Tony said. "You can probably just go with the shirt, some jeans, and the mask. That'd get your point across." 

"I like my spandex," Peter defended. "Makes my butt look good." 

Tony rolled his eyes, pushing down on the thought of the prototype Spider-Man suits he had in his computer. And tentative designs for the web-shooters. And the entire floor of the Avengers Tower he had on reserve for when Spidey moved out of his aunt's. Bruce and Steve had pulled Tony aside beforehand, explaining that showering the young hero with gifts would come across as bribery. 

Tony thought that was kind of stupid, even if he had used that technique before. The kid was a hero, and heroes needed tech. Especially since he was practically naked for all the protection his spandex gave him, no weapons other than his fists, no mode of transportation other than his webs, and only a tiny apartment in Queens occupied by an over-protective mother-figure for sanctuary. If anyone needed to be bribed, it was Peter Parker. 

But Steve and Bruce had made their point. And besides, Christmas was only in eight months, with Peter's birthday just a few weeks before that, sometime in mid-autumn. Barring any major explosions between now and then (knock on wood), Tony could get him some gear then. Spoiling someone on special occasions didn't count as bribery, right? 

So he clapped a hand on Peter's shoulder and said, very seriously, "If you ever need anything, give me a ring." 

\--

_Now_

He knew he should've packed the kid with proper gear. 

Wanda, too, now that he was thinking about it. Though she was terrifying enough with her weird-ass powers. Tony seriously doubted any of his inventions would actually prove helpful to her, unless he was applying it to her love of cooking. Maybe a slow-cooker?

He had FRIDAY scouring the web for any hint of Hydra and the kids. SHIELD was doing the same, and the super-spies had left to check with a few underground contacts. Somehow, Tony found himself with Thor while getting a cup of coffee from the public kitchen. 

"It has been nearly two days," Thor growled. 

"Can't you go up to the giant creeper in the sky, ask him where they are?" Tony replied testily. 

"Heimdall sees all, whether he wants to or not," Thor defended. "And in any case, I cannot. Technically, I am banished from Asguard, and there are few who approve of my 'dawdling' on Midguard, despite the good I do. I'm afraid I'll have to wait at least a decade for any chance of receiving a favor." 

"Bummer," Tony muttered into his mug. 

Thor shifted in his seat. "How long does it usually take, to recover someone from the enemy here?" 

"Depending on the enemy and the kidnap-ee, anywhere from a few hours to a few weeks. Took me three months to bust out of Afghanistan."

"Your...lady Pepper was taken by a villain, was she not?" 

"Yeah, but I got her back in a day," Tony said. "Plus, she got some smoking hot superpowers out of the deal. I mean, literally smoking hot. She was able to burn anything to a crisp. It was unbelievably sexy." 

That got a weak smile out of Thor. Tony considered it a victory. 

"There are many dangers in Midguard I had not considered before," Thor said slowly. "I know you hire armed guards to protect your loved ones." 

"Yeah..." 

Thor swallowed. "I...would it be possible for you to extend some of that protection to Lady Jane?" 

Tony gave Thor a look. "I already did." 

Thor blinked. "You did?" 

"And to Peggy Carter, and Bruce's ex, and Clint's family, too, once I found out they existed. Though he has them so carefully hidden I probably didn't have to bother." Tony shrugged. "Eh, whatever." 

"I...thank you," Thor said, looking dazed. "Thank you very much."

Tony shrugged again. "No problem. Comes with the job. Being a superhero might be a major turn-on, but bullet wounds aren't."

Thor cringed. Tony looked at his coffee. "Who else...oh, yeah, I've got a few incognitos across the street from Peter's aunt's house." 

"Wise," Thor muttered. Then he sat bolt upright. "His aunt!" 

"What?" 

"She doesn't know!" 

"...oh, shit," Tony realized. 

"Boss?" FRIDAY said over the speakers. "Couldn't help but overhearing. May Parker has shown no signs of searching for her nephew. Not even on social media." 

Tony frowned. "She's not putting up flyers or anything?" 

"It doesn't appear she knows he's missing." 

His frown deepened. "Well, that's...strange." 

"Aye," Thor agreed. "Is it possible that she's in league with the enemy?" 

"I wouldn't jump to conclusions just yet, Goldie," Tony said, even as his gut started churning. Hydra had infiltrated SHIELD, after all. What was one old lady? "I'm calling Fury."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	6. VI

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aunt May has some...concerns...about Peter.

_2 months ago_

"They'll be healed up in under a week," Peter protested, hissing as Bruce poked at his broken ribs. "Super-healing, and whatnot." 

"I'll tape them up," Bruce said, getting the med kit. 

Peter was sitting on the kitchen table, where Bruce had parked him. He probably would've walked right out of the building without so much as a thought of seeing a doctor if Bruce hadn't caught him hissing in pain as he changed out of his uniform. The teen looked at his digital watch and sighed. "Next time we have an attack at 4am, I get dibs on the villain." 

Bruce glanced up at the clock and winced. Peter had to be in school in an hour. 

"Get to him first, then," Clint said, leaning against the wall. "Before your girlfriend drives him to insanity with her freaky-ass powers." 

Peter's eyes flashed with anger. "First off, Wanda's not my girlfriend, she's dating Vision. Second, her freaky-ass powers saved _your_ sorry ass. Without her, you'd be a pancake on the pavement. You owe her a thank-you for that _and_ an apology for blowing up on her like an asshole." 

Both Bruce and Clint paused at the vehemence in Peter's tone. The fight left him as suddenly as he came. He shrank into his shoulders, looking at the floor. "Sorry. Just...tired, I guess." 

"You know, you could probably call in a sick day," Bruce said carefully. He didn't want to encourage Peter to neglect his education, but if the bags under his eyes were any indication, the boy needed a break. 

"Nah, I'm saving those for the days I get really fucked up," Peter said. "Like a broken limb or kidnapping." 

Clint narrowed his eyes. "If you were any good at being Spider-Man, you wouldn't _get_ broken limbs or kidnapped." 

"Clint," Bruce scolded. 

Peter didn't seem to mind the insult at all. He looked at Clint with genuine curiosity. "How am I going to get good without getting practice?" 

Clint shook his head and stormed out of the room. 

Peter watched him go. "I think he's starting to like me." 

Bruce gave a grim smile. "I think he needs some sleep. You, too." 

"Well, then I guess it's a good thing I have economics class today. A forty-five minute power-nap'll do me some good." 

Bruce shook his head, finishing with his ribs. "Just be careful you don't push yourself too far, Peter." 

\--

_Now_

"You're saying she hasn't even noticed he's missing?" Bruce hissed, as he and Clint walked down the street in Queens. 

"That's what Tony said," Clint replied. "The SHIELD agents in the area confirmed it; she hasn't strayed from her schedule one bit. In fact, Parker hasn't been anywhere near his aunt for the last week." 

Bruce frowned. "Then...where's he staying?" 

"That's what we're going to find out." 

"You said we had to find out if May Parker is Hydra." 

"We're multi-tasking," Clint said. "You remember the cover story?" 

"Yes." 

May Parker was walking down the sidewalk toward them, coming back to her house after work. On rainy days, she drove. On gorgeous days like today, she walked and took the bus. 

_Peter loves this kind of weather,_ Bruce lamented. It was one of the last good days of autumn. Maybe a bit on the nippy side, but so far not a single snowflake or patch of slippery ice that made webbing across the city risky, and he could feel the heat of the sun on his skin. 

When they were right in front of May, Clint "tripped," as if spraining his ankle, and bumped into May. 

She yelped as they went sprawling. Clint hissed in fake pain. "Oh, gosh, I am so sorry," he said in a heavy Midwestern accent, as if he was a character from Fargo. "I'm sorry, I'm so clumsy. Are you okay, ma'am?" 

"I'm fine, I'm fine," May said, giving a strained smile. Bruce helped both of them up, and gathered May's purse. 

"I'm Clint Erwin," Clint said, holding out his hand. "This is my roommate, Bruce. We just moved in a few blocks over and we're trying to get a lay of the land, here." 

"I'm May Parker." They shook hands. May collected her purse from Bruce. "Would you like a cup of tea? I can tell you a bit about the neighborhood." 

"That'd be great, ma'am, thank you." 

They gave May their fake backstory on the way to the house: they'd met in graduate school and had just gotten their fresh degrees, and decided to share a house together, since they were both buried under student debt and couldn't afford any fancy houses a master's degree usually gets you. 

"You both like physics, huh?" May said, opening the door for them. "You're going to have to keep it simple in this house. Other than the fact that gravity pulls things down, I don't know much about it." 

"Oh, it's okay, ma'am. We need a bit of a break from it, too," Clint said, smiling. 

The Parker household was small, barely big enough for three people, and tidy. Everything off the floor, all the surfaces dusted, the carpet vacuumed, the dishes clean...it looked like a teenager had never set foot in this place. 

At the same time, though, there were framed photos scattered throughout the living room. Bruce looked at a few clustered on the endtable while May made the tea. There was Peter as a child, him as a younger teen, and him from maybe a year ago. May appeared in several, too, as did a man about her age with a kind face and glasses. 

"Is this your husband?" Bruce asked, as she came into the living room with tea. 

May gave a sad smile. "Yes, that's Ben." 

Bruce looked at her left hand. Her wedding ring was still there. 

May caught him looking. She gave him the tea. "He died, a year and a half ago." 

"I'm...so sorry to hear that," Bruce said, his mind stumbling a little. He'd known Peter lived with his aunt and had been raised by her, but he'd had no idea there was an uncle who'd died so recently. 

If Clint was surprised, he didn't show it. He pointed to a twelve-year-old Peter, grinning at a science fair. "That your boy?" 

"He is," May said, sitting across from them. "That's Peter. Almost eighteen now. He's..." She sighed. "Well, you're going to hear it anyway. Better from me than the neighborhood gossip, right?" 

"That's usually best," Bruce agreed, blowing on his tea. 

May looked down at her hands. "I kicked Peter out last week." 

Clint paused. Bruce felt his stomach drop. "Um...okay?" 

She gave a weak smile. "'Round the time Ben died, he started coming home late at night covered head to foot in cuts and bruises. I figured it was just his way of coping with the death. Ben was...he was murdered, in front of Peter. That's traumatic for anyone, especially a child, and it seemed only fair that Peter would be angry and start getting into fights, but...it kept going on and on. And when Gwen died, it just got worse." 

"Gwen?" Clint asked. 

"His girlfriend. They started dating last fall." May's smile was still sad, but more genuine now. "She was his first girlfriend. I think they truly loved each other." She shook her head. "She died, too. They say Spider-Man killed her." 

Bruce choked on his tea. His head had started spinning at Ben, and now it was lost somewhere in a tornado. 

Luckily, Clint was much more collected. "I thought Spider-Man was a hero," he said carefully. 

"Oh, he is," May quickly remedied. "I'm not saying that's what happened, I'm just saying that's what some people think. There was this fight between Spider-Man and another, I think they called him the Green Goblin? Anyway, Gwen was caught right in the middle. Goblin tried to use her as a hostage and she fell from a clocktower. The police say Spider-Man tried to save her with his webs; he was too high up to catch her. He did managed to get her, just before she hit the floor." 

"...but the force of the fall and reverse force of the webbing caused her neck to break," Bruce finished. 

May smiled wanely. "You are a physics man. Anyway, that happened almost a year ago now. Peter's...nightly activities just got worse and worse. He wouldn't tell me what was going on, no matter how hard I pushed. I think he was involved in some kind of drugs, maybe..." May wiped away a tear. "I don't know. I didn't know what else to do, so I told him to leave. Haven't heard from him since. But the school says he hasn't shown up for class the last two days." 

...well, shit. 

Bruce cleared his throat and set aside his tea. He knelt in front of May and took her hand. "I know it sounds trite, but it'll be okay," he promised. "Peter sounds like a smart kid. I'm sure whatever troubles he's dealing with, he'll get through them." Bruce leaned forward. "And then he'll realize that his aunt was right all along and he really should've just listened to her from the start." 

May gave a watery laugh. It broke Bruce's heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	7. VII

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some of Steve's thoughts on Peter.

_7 months ago..._

"Well, that went a lot smoother than the last alien invasion," Tony said. 

"You're saying that from a hospital bed," Steve replied, his arm in a cast. 

"Didn't die, though." 

Steve winced. A nurse came in, looking worried. "Captain Rogers, could you come with me, please?" 

Steve and Tony exchanged a confused look, before Steve followed the nurse through the SHIELD medical facility. Just a few halls away was a closed, guarded door. 

"He insists on keeping his identity a secret," the nurse said, with a bit an eye-roll. "He's more paranoid than Fury. Speaking of Fury, he wants you to talk to him about joining the Avengers. Personally, I think he's crazy, 'cause...well, you'll see." 

Giving the nurse a weird look, Steve stepped into the room. 

And almost swore. 

Spider-Man was there, which wasn't a surprise. He'd joined the Avengers at the start of the battle when the aliens had started pouring in, helping the civilians evacuate. Near the end he'd been in an apartment building that'd collapsed, and he hadn't gotten out in time. Luckily, he'd only suffered a few cuts and a broken leg. 

But that wasn't what drew Steve up short. Spider-Man's mask was off. 

"How old are you?" he demanded. 

Spider-Man (no, you know what? Spider-Kid) glared at him. "Nineteen." 

"Liar." 

He groaned. "Fine. I'm seventeen." 

Steve ran his fingers through his hair, staring at the boy. Underage kids had signed up in the war, so it's not like Steve wasn't used to seeing minors in combat. But there wasn't a war going on right now. The vigilante had been around for a year essentially doing police work and facing the occasional villain. Steve wanted to both admire him for sticking it out so long, tuck him away to safety so he didn't get hurt ever again, and smack him for being a little punk. Steve sat on the bed, careful of the boy's leg. "What's your name?" 

"Not telling." 

"I'm not going to tell your parents, or get you in trouble," Steve promised. "But I'd rather have this conversation between Steve and you rather than 'Captain' and 'Spider-Man.'"

He regarded Steve warily. Then, "Peter." 

"I assume your parents don't know?" 

"Well, they're dead, so probably not. I live with my aunt, and she doesn't know. Nobody does." 

Steve winced. "I'm sorry to hear that." 

Peter rubbed his eyes. "Are you going to try to convince me to stop being Spider-Man?" 

"No."

Peter looked up. "Huh?"

"Short of tying you to a chair, nothing I say or do will get you to stop. I know from personal experience." Steve tipped his head. "Although...you did drop off the grid for a few months...did you go out of town?" 

"No. I...needed to work some things out." Peter rubbed the back of his neck. "So...what are you doing here?" 

"First was to check up on you. How's the leg?" Steve asked. 

"Broken. But don't worry, I have a spare." 

Steve opened his mouth, then snorted a laugh. "Okay, all right. Second thing: how would you like to join the Avengers?" 

Peter stared at him, wide-eyed. "Uh...what?" 

"Being on a team is safer than being on your own," Steve pointed out. "We wouldn't have to tell your aunt, or reveal your identity. And considering the number of martial artists we have, you'd learn quite a bit." 

Peter was still staring at him. "Oh, I've gotta be dreaming." 

Steve poked his leg. 

Peter yowled in pain. "You _jerk_! Not cool, Captain!" 

"You're not dreaming," Steve pointed out. 

"I don't know whether to join the Avengers so I can kick your ass in sparring, or join a supervillain league to kick your ass on the street." 

"I'm sure you'll figure it out." Steve stood, smiling. "Stop by the Tower when you've made up your mind. Door's always open." 

\--

_Now_

"Let me get this straight," Steve said. "Not only was Peter kicked out of his house last week, he didn't tell any of us?" 

"He told Wanda," Vision said quietly. "He's been staying at her apartment." 

Steve rounded on him, drawing to his full serum-enhanced height. "Why didn't you say anything?" 

Vision met Steve's anger with his steady, golden gaze. "He asked us not to." 

"He's a minor!" 

"And Wanda was providing him with food and shelter, while she was staying with me." 

Tony opened his mouth, closed it, and frowned. "Wait, doesn't she have an apartment here...?" 

Vision raised an eyebrow. "No. She was under the impression that you needed some space." 

"Well...maybe at first, but..." Tony rubbed the back of his neck. "Ah, dammit." 

Steve rubbed his tired eyes. Two Avengers were homeless and refused to tell their team leader. That right there was a red flag that something was very wrong. 

He put that on the backburner for now. "Any news on Hydra?" 

"So far, no movement," Natasha reported. "We don't have any idea where--"

Vision's phone rang. 

He cleared his throat, pulling it out with an embarrassed wince. "Sorry." He answered. "Hello?" 

A beat, and Vision's eyes widened. He hit the speaker button so hard the phone almost cracked. "Peter?!" 

Everyone crowded around as Peter's voice came from the phone. "Hey, Viz. Can you send a plane to Romania?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	8. VIII

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vision gets an interesting phone call.

_4 Months ago_

Vision sat in his apartment at Avengers Tower, alone, trying to read a book. He gave up after re-reading the same paragraph for the third time. He put his face in his hands and sighed. 

There was a knock on the door. 

"Wanda?" he called hopefully. 

"Sorry, I'm not nearly that pretty." 

Vision ignored the disappointed pang in his chest and opened the door. "What is it, Peter?" 

The young man was in his uniform. The call to assemble had been hours ago, and his role in the battle had been minor, so he'd probably gone on patrol. He gave a forced smile. "Well, your girlfriend's drunk on some vodka I gave her, after I found her sobbing on the roof of her apartment building. Care to explain?" 

"You were there for the battle. You saw." 

"I saw her take out an entire building full of bad guys the rest of us couldn't even find, and it was really cool." 

"She used telepathy to find it," Vision explained calmly, "which Captain Rogers expressly forbad her from doing. After which she single-handedly moved that building into a prison with her telekinesis." 

"She used telepathy, yeah. _On the bad guys_ ," Peter said. "If she hadn't, your tech wouldn't have found them for another week, and who knows what would've happened. They were terrorists, for crying out loud! And as for the building thing, she _is_ a telekinetic, so what do you expect her to--"

"She scared them," Vision bit out. 

Peter frowned at him, confused. "What?" 

"The other Avengers are already cautious about letting her onto the team, and her powers are only growing. If she keeps doing this..." Vision trailed off.

"You're scared of her?" Peter gasped. 

"I'm scared _for_ her," Vision corrected. 

"So you're going to keep her on training wheels forever?" 

"Not forever. Just...until the others are a little more accepting." 

Peter snorted. "That's not going to happen, and you know it." 

"You have little faith in your teammates," Vision commented. 

"They don't have any faith in us," Peter countered. An unusual amount of cheer was back in his voice, and Vision recognized that tone. He only used it when talking to villains. "Look, I get that you're trying to protect your girlfriend. But if I find her breaking down like that again, I'll talk her into dropping your room in the Hudson. Sound good?" 

"...did you just give me the shovel talk?" 

"No, I just pointed out that your girlfriend is a lot more powerful than you, and you've got to be man enough to admit it to her face." Peter patted his shoulder and left. 

Vision found Wanda in the kitchen the next day, stress-baking. Her eyes were dry, but bloodshot. Vision took the spoon out of her hand and hugged her, covering her petite frame in as much warmth and love as he could conjure. "I'm sorry," he said. 

\--

_Now_

"Peter, you're breaking up," Vision said, his voice a bit panicked. "Is Wanda all right?"

"She's fine...Hydra base...shot...Barnes..." 

"Barnes?!" Steve echoed. "What about him?" 

"He sho...hospital...gotta go!" 

The line went dead. 

"Everyone suit up," Steve ordered. "We're going to Romania."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	9. IX

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally! We get to see what those crazy kids have been up to.

_5 months ago..._

Thor watched the spider-child change into his suit with growing annoyance. Young Peter was practically buzzing with excitement as he pulled on his mask. 

Thor moved to leave the room of lockers, but hesitated at the entrance. "This may be a long battle," he said carefully. 

"Good thing it's the weekend then, huh?" Peter replied. 

"Dangerous," Thor added. "Much more so than your petty criminals." 

"Yeah," Peter admitted. "But we're on a team. Safety in numbers, right?" 

"We are on a team," Thor said. "There can be no weak links." 

Now Peter sounded uncertain. "Yeah..." 

"It's better not to go into a battle at all, than to abandon your shield brothers and sisters when they rely on you most." 

Peter tipped his head in confusion. "You think I'd ditch you guys?" 

"It is a valid concern." 

Peter stepped back a little, then shook his head, chuckling. "Okay, Thor. Whatever." 

He walked out of the room. Thor watched him go, glowering. He'd tried to convince the Captain and Fury not to allow Peter Parker onto the team. On Asguard, only the cowardly wore masks, shielding their true names and faces in shadows to avoid the consequences of their actions. Usually they were thieves, criminals trying to avoid justice. And if Thor understood Midguardian laws correctly, the Man of Spiders' nightly activities were unlawful. The local authorities had wanted him captured and put away since he began. 

And Peter was a child. When Thor had been that age (or the Asguardian equivalent), he'd thought of war and battle as a game. He'd paid dearly for that misconception. He didn't want the child to pay a similar price, and he certainly didn't want his teammates to suffer for his mistakes. 

Thor vowed to keep a close eye on the spider-child. If he sensed any cowardice, or worse, arrogance, he would see the boy removed from the team. 

\--

_Now_

Thor was quiet, deep in thought while they flew the metal bird across the sea. He'd left his lady Jane in the land of California, to her research. Now, he wondered how much danger she was in, just by associating with Thor of the Avengers. Stark had sworn to have his men protect her, but that offered Thor little consolation. Everyone on this world, and on Asguard, knew Jane Foster was his paramour. How many villains? He couldn't believe he'd never considered that risk before. He was royalty! He knew the risks of a renowned name and title. The number of assassination attempts--successful and failed--in his family tree was ridiculous. He should've realized Jane and Darcy and Erik and all other Midguardian friends he had would be at risk. 

Peter had understood the risks at the start. 

"We're here!" Stark announced. "Right where the call was...made...oh, shit." 

Thor got to his feet and looked out the window. In the middle of the isolated woods was a Hydra fortress: a small one with only four buildings. Well, three buildings now. The fourth was a smoldering ruin. 

There were bodies everywhere.

Barton landed them in a clearing, and they rushed out. Banner stayed behind, to be called only in case of a "Code Green."

"Stark," Captain Rogers said. 

"I'm scanning," the Man of Iron replied. He paused. "They're...all alive." 

Thor approached the nearest body and found that Stark was correct. The man was asleep, his wrists bound in plastic behind his back. 

"They're sleeping," he said, poking him with the butt of the hammer. 

"That's...weird," Barton said. He smacked one in the head. The sleeping man just snored louder. "We can't wake them up, either." 

"This building used to be the command center," Captain Rogers said, pointing to the blackened ruins. Several sleeping Hydra soldiers were lined up in front of it, a safe distance away. 

"Parker never killed anyone," Natasha said quietly. "Not during battles, not even the worst villains." 

The Vision lifted off the ground, levitating over the fortress. Thor did the same, searching for the young ones. They only found more sleeping agents. 

"Found something," Natasha announced. 

Everyone gathered around her. She'd found an underground room beneath the command center, untouched by the destruction. "Backup security feeds," she said, pointing to the screens. She and Stark immediately set to work on them. 

"Got 'em," Stark called. 

One of the screens covered an entire wall. That's where the feed came up. 

It was two different rooms, likely on opposite ends of the facility. The Scarlet Witch was in a white room, her arms bound to her chest. 

Vision growled. "They put her in a straightjacket." 

Thor swallowed, watching the young woman as she sat against the wall. After Ultron, Wanda had sputtered an apology to each of them for what she'd done. Thor had begrudgingly forgiven her--she'd redeemed herself, after all. But he'd always kept an eye on her. Always stayed away from her. He'd see the tired pain in her eyes when he and the others avoided her. Thor had considered it further penance, and a just fate. She was simply too...strange. 

But she did not deserve this. 

In the other room was Peter. He was out of his uniform, in his casual clothing. He was chained to a chair, alone. 

The door to Peter's room opened, and a man in a Hydra uniform stepped in. 

Natasha sucked in a breath. "This could get ugly, guys." 

"But...he's a child!" Thor protested. 

"They won't care," Clint said grimly. 

"Happy birthday, Peter," the Hydra man greeted, smiling. 

Peter grinned. "Did you bring cake?" 

"Better. I brought you a choice." The man pulled a chair from off-screen and sat in front of Peter. "Tell me everything you know about the Avengers now, or put up with the messy torture and threats against your aunt May first." 

Peter wrinkled his nose. "Well, that's a shitty birthday present." 

"Didn't have time to hit the store. Deal with what you get." 

Thor watched Peter carefully. The young man showed no fear in his face. "You're the guys who turned James Barnes into the Winter Soldier, right?" he said. 

"That's correct. Would you like to be the next Asset? Comes with remarkable benefits: full health care coverage, you travel all over the world, and your life expectancy expands decades." 

Peter pretended to consider it. "Tempting...but you've already saved that spot for Wanda, haven't you?" 

The man paused, then smiled. "They don't give you nearly enough credit." 

"Doesn't take a genius to figure it out. Why else would you guys kidnap her instead of kill her? You need a new super-assassin, and Wanda has the coolest powers." 

"We just think she'll be happier here with us," the man said. "Would you say a mutant's powers are an essential part of them?" 

"Sure, why not?" 

"What do you call the people who force a mutant to suppress her powers?"

"Chicken shits." 

"Not exactly the words I'd use, but they work," the man said. "The Avengers keep her caged up. She does these remarkable things with her mind, and they punish her for it. She causes less collateral than Hulk, or Thor, or Stark, but gets the most shit. With us, Wanda can reach her full potential. She can be free. You can, too." 

Steven shifted his feet, looking guilty. Thor couldn't help but think of Loki, who'd felt as if he had been repressed and pushed aside. Whom everyone avoided because of his magic. Such thoughts and behaviors had turned him evil. Wanda hadn't gotten to that point yet (Thor hoped), but with the Hydra agent dangling such temptations and making such blatant threats of torture...

The Avengers had already faced the wrath of Scarlet Witch once. Thor did not want to do it again, especially knowing that she wouldn't repent and come to their side a second time. 

"Are you the guys who write those cheesey college pamphlets?" Peter asked, unperturbed. "'Cause that's what you sound like."

"That's a side job." 

"Wanda's eyes are red," Vision said. 

Thor jumped at his voice, and tore his eyes to Wanda, whose eyes were indeed glowing red. 

Natasha pulled up a third room, one with a massive window that allowed people to look into Wanda's room. There were half a dozen soldiers there. 

"She can't do anything," one of them said calmly, barely looking up. "Not without her hands."

"I thought she could read minds," another said. 

" _Read_ them. Nothing more." 

"I know how poorly the other Avengers treat you," the man told Peter. "Captain Rogers and Stark, they see you as only a child." 

"Legally speaking, I was until today..." 

"Banner doesn't go anywhere near you, can't even stand you," the man continued, barreling over Peter's words. "And Romanov, Barton, and Thor treat you like dirt. At times I think they want you to fail. They don't see you as an Avenger." 

Peter looked at him and snorted. "Oh, what, is that supposed to be news?"

The man raised an eyebrow. 

"Yeah, they don't like me," Peter said. He wasn't teasing. He wasn't joking. He was completely serious. Thor's stomach dropped. "I wouldn't be surprised if they kicked me off the team just for getting kidnapped by you jerks." 

Steven made an indignant noise in the back of his throat while Clint face-palmed. 

"You're their weakest link," the man said firmly. "And they don't even try to help you out. But the Winter Soldier...he's better then all of them put together."

"Yeah..." Peter admitted. "I mean, Natasha and Clint probably could've busted out of these cuffs in under a minute. It took me five and a half." 

The man paused. "What?" 

It happened at the same time. 

The screens on Wanda went scarlet, then black. Peter lept from his chair at the man and had him unconscious in seconds. He grabbed the man's firearm and shot the lock in the door. 

Natasha clicked on the boards and the screens followed Peter, and tried to follow Wanda, but those kept going red, then black. Peter ripped his way through the Hydra soldiers, who were scrambling in both directions. He never killed them, even when they managed to get a good hit and break a few ribs; they heard them crack on the cameras. 

Peter climbed up the smooth walls with his bare hands and jumped out a window. Moments later, he appeared on another screen, in another building. After felling or sneaking around a dozen villains, he stopped at a thick, metal wall with a lit pad next to it. He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. 

Time slowed to a halt as Peter tapped his foot. 

Finally, there was a knock on the other side. 

"I need the key-code," he called. 

A pause, then Peter pushed off the wall and entered the code in the pad. 

The door opened, and Wanda walked out, pulling off the last of her shredded straightjacket. Her hair was frazzled, her eyes still red, and beyond her Thor could see more felled Hydra soldiers. 

"Oh, ouch," Peter hissed, taking Wanda's arm. There was a cut, staining her shirt. 

"Bullet graze," she explained as they began walking. "He got the shot off before I got to his mind. I don't think they know about the mind-control. Or the handless telekinesis." 

"See, it's this kind of stupidity that'll guarantee Hydra never actually takes over the world," Peter said. "How many are there?" 

Wanda's eyes glowed. "Over a hundred." She paused, and stared at Peter. "Your mask. Your identity!" 

"I know, I know," he said, and for the first time his voice became edged with panic. "They know exactly who I am."

"There's a control room in another building. We'll be able to contact the others from there, warn them, tell them to get to your aunt. It also has all of the security footage; we could wipe it." 

Peter thought for a minute. "Is there anything around here that goes boom, besides you?" 

"Surprisingly no. No bombs or grenades or dynamite..." 

"What about a janitor's closet?" 

"Down the hall, to the left." Wanda smirked. "Want me to make a distraction?" 

"Pretty please. Oh, and keep this up." He pointed to his head. 

Wanda's eyes glowed again, and they parted ways. 

"Keep what up?" Steven asked. 

"...a telepathic link," Vision said, his voice a bit awed. "Wanda's linked their minds. That's how they attacked at the same time."

"And Peter _let her_?" Natasha almost squeaked. 

"I think they've been doing it for a while." 

Peter pulled a few brightly-colored containers from the closet while Wanda went on a rampage. Thor had seen her battle multiple enemies at once with her powers, but nothing like this. She put a shield around herself that the metal bullets bounced off of. She threw men through walls with a flick of her fingers. She controlled men's minds so they opened doors and locked themselves in cages. 

Peter used the chaos to good use, slipping through the shadows until he was in the control room. There were three men there, and after a brief struggle they were unconscious. 

He immediately set to work on the computers. "What is he doing?" Thor asked. 

"Wiping the security feed," Natasha said. "And all the files on him and Wanda. They didn't know about these backups." 

Two things happened next. One of the Hydra agents on the ground regained consciousness, and another man entered the room. 

Peter saw it too late. The Hydra soldier fired his gun. Peter staggered and collapsed against the wall, blood blooming against his torso. 

The new man shot the Hydra soldier dead. 

"Bucky!" Steve gasped. 

Peter looked up at the Winter Soldier, blinked, and gave a bloody grin. "You have a metal arm? That's so cool!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	10. X

"What are you doing?" Barnes asked.

"Erasing footage and blowing up the place," Peter said. Blood was trickling through his fingers from his gut wound. "What are you doing?" 

"Destroying this Hydra facility." He frowned at Peter. "How old are you?" 

"Well, today's my birthday..." 

Barnes looked at the screens. "That dame outside..." 

"First off, don't call them dames. They hate that. Second, that's Wanda. She's with us." 

Barnes raised an eyebrow at Peter. "Is it 'us' already?" 

"Enemy of my enemy, and all that. Plus, you're Steve's friend, and I'm an Avenger, so..." 

"You?" 

Peter waved a bloody hand. "Peter Parker, a.k.a. Spider-Man. Nice to meet you."

Barnes was silent. 

"What do I call you? Not Winter Soldier, and Steve's got dibs on 'Bucky'..."

Barnes swallowed. Then, "Call me...James, I guess." 

Steve snorted, rubbing his face. "He hated being called James." 

"Well, he's a different person now," Natasha said. Clint kept his eyes on the screens, watching the blood pool beneath Peter. It didn't look like a fatal gunshot wound, so long as it was treated quickly and properly.

"That'll work." Peter tipped his head. On another screen, Wanda went rigid. Then furious, red rage slammed into the Hydra soldiers. "Okay, so Wanda knows what's up. She's not happy about me being shot. Can you hand me that phone?" 

"For what?" Barnes asked. 

"I need to call the others. We're in Romania, apparently, and I didn't get the chance to pack my bags or renew my passport before getting kidnapped, so..." 

Barnes took the phone and handed it to Peter, before turning his attention to the screens. 

Peter dialed, snorting. "Geez, Wanda, figures you'd only memorize Vision's number..." 

"And how many of the other Avengers' numbers have _you_ memorized, millennial?" Barnes challenged. 

"I plea the fifth." Peter put the phone to his ear. "Hey, Viz. Can you send a plane to Romania?...yeah, Wanda's fine, but I've been shot. Don't tell Natasha. Barnes is here, too...he showed up a few minutes ago. We're going to the nearest hospital, and--" A window shattered, bullets streaming in. Barnes and Peter both ducked for cover. "Gotta go!" Peter shouted, and threw the phone aside. 

Wanda came into the room, and blanched when she saw Peter. 

"It's not as bad as it looks?" he said. 

"Shut up," she ordered, crouching next to him. She looked up at Barnes. "There's too many." 

Barnes took out a pistol and checked to make sure it was loaded. "I can manage." 

"No killing," Peter said, his gaze stony. 

Barnes glared at him. "You joined the Avengers without the resolve to kill?" 

"With the resolve _not_ to kill." 

Clint's breath caught. 

Barnes studied him for a minute. "Then what exactly is your plan?" 

Peter looked up at Wanda. "Think you can knock them out?" 

Wanda stared at him. "Getting you to sleep without nightmares is one thing. There are _dozens_ of them out there, and..." 

"Wanda," Peter said, gently. "You've got this." 

Wanda chewed her lower lip, then looked up. "I need to merge our minds, or you'll both go out, too." 

"Sure," Peter said, the same time Barnes said, "No. You're not getting in my head." 

"Then you're going under," Wanda said. "I can carry you out." 

Barnes hissed. "That's worse." 

"You can trust her, James," Peter said. "She won't make you do anything." 

Barnes was gripping his pistol with white knuckles. Outside, the Hydra soldiers were regrouping. They had less than a minute. 

"Fine," Barnes bit out. He pointed his pistol at Wanda. "If I come out of this with more blood on my hands, you get a bullet in the head." 

"Deal," Wanda said without hesitation. She took one of Peter's hands in her own and put the other on Barnes' arm, and closed her eyes. 

A red ring formed around them, growing brighter and brighter. Then the air exploded in red. 

All the soldiers dropped. 

After everything dissipated, Wanda swayed while Barnes blinked. "That's it?" 

"That's it," Peter said. "Wanda, you okay?" 

"I'm good," she huffed, rubbing her temples. "Headache."

Barnes peaked out the window. "How long will they be asleep?" 

"I don't know," she confessed. "I can get one person to sleep for almost forty-eight hours, but I was going for breadth instead of depth." 

"Better get moving, then. Can you carry him?" 

Wanda stood and lifted Peter with telekinesis. She pulled off her sweater and tied it around his wound. Peter gave a strangled scream, then a ragged, "I'm okay. I'm good." 

"I'm right behind you," Barnes said, pulling out the chemicals Peter had snatched from the closet. 

Clint didn't know the recipe Peter had in mind, or what Barnes was using, but it got results. Five minutes later, the building with a fiery ruin. 

"Bucky must've tied everyone up afterwards, just in case," Steve said in the quiet room. 

"How long ago was this?" Clint asked warily. 

"Sixteen hours ago," Stark said. 

"And they're all _still_ asleep? That woman is terrifying." 

"And that is the last thing she needs to hear," Vision said sternly. "We've already made her an outsider. Both of them." 

"No shit," Clint muttered, Peter's words echoing in his ears. "Where's the nearest hospital?" 

"Thirty miles away," Natasha said grimly, pulling up a map. 

"...how many cars are out there, according to the footage?" 

Nat pulled it up. After a quick count she said, "Twenty-six." 

Clint hurried up the stairs and did a quick count of the cars. He grinned. "There's only twenty-five."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	11. XI

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hulk wants Spidey and Red back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really liked writing this chapter. I don't know a lot about Hulk or how Banner's powers actually work, but I've always seen Hulk as a toddler, or a dog: simple and not exactly a genius, but he learns and can have friends. If that's wrong, sorry not sorry. :)

_5 months ago_

Hulk likes Spidey. 

Red still scares him, so Hulk stays away from her. Tin Man's up in the sky, making big bangs with Hammer and Jewel. Birdie's up on the tall buildings...somewhere, tossing sticks at Bad Things (more sky-people, like the puny grey things that came from the hole in the sky that swallowed Tin Man before spitting him back out, except these sky-people are blue, not grey). Lullaby and Shield are fighting, too, and staying away from Hulk. They don't want Hulk to smash them by accident. That's okay. Hulk doesn't want to smash them, either. Lullaby's nice and Shield always finds Bad Things for Hulk to smash. 

So everyone stays away from Hulk, and Hulk stays away from them. 

Except for Spidey. 

Spidey is new, and tiny (almost as tiny as Red), and his webs are sticky so Hulk stays away from them. But Spidey catches Bad Things with his webs and swings them over to Hulk, and Hulk smacks them with a street lamp and sends them flying faaaaaar away, back into the sky. Spidey calls the game baseball. Hulk likes baseball. 

Then Hulk gets smashed by a pale monster with lots and lots of legs. He roars, tries to get out of its legs and smash it, but it doesn't let go, until it throws Hulk up into the sky. Hulk crashes to the ground and it _hurts_. 

Hulk roars, shaking off the dust and debris, and jumps back into the fight. It takes a while, though. He got thrown very far. 

By the time he makes it to the pale monsters with legs, it's wrapped up in a lot of webs. It can't move one bit. Spidey's standing on top of it, patting the webs down. "Hulk!" he cheers, dropping down to the ground. "You okay, buddy?" 

Hulk snorts. Hulk okay? Hulk doesn't get hurt. 

Spidey pats his arm. The touch startles Hulk. No one does that unless they're trying to smash him, or put him to sleep. "Glad you're not hurt," Spidey says. "Want to play some more baseball?" 

Hulk brightens. 

They keep playing and smashing until the sky-people go away. That's good, because Hulk is tired. He's smashed his fill. It's time to be puny Banner again. 

But before Hulk gives up being green, he sees Spidey and Shield talking. They're trying to be quiet, but Hulk has good hearing. 

"You need to be _very_ careful around him," Shield says. "He sometimes mixes us up with the bad guys." 

"What are you talking about?" Spidey asks. "He hasn't attacked any of you since Wakanda, and that was because of magic." 

"He's...more of an animal than a person, like this. He can still bite." 

"Steve!" 

"It's the truth," Shield says. "Look, he's a teammate, and we care about him, but you've got to be really, really careful. One careless swing, and you're dead. Don't get that close to him during fights." 

"Steve, he knows us. He knows we're his friends." 

"That's not enough. Stay away from Hulk. That's an order." 

Spidey is quiet for a long while, then he dips his head. "Fine." 

Hulk doesn't feel anger at this. With this, he's tired. It happens a lot. People see Hulk smash and get scared. And they stay away. Even Shield and Lullaby and Tin Man and Hammer and Jewel and Birdie and Red. Now Spidey. 

So Hulk isn't angry, and he doesn't want to smash. Not about this. With this, he's just sad. Because he likes baseball. And they don't play it again. 

\--

_Now_

The thing about Bruce and Hulk is that they do share some things. More than just the body. Bruce will get Hulk's emotions after a Hulk-out, and can usually tell how well a battle went by how satisfied he feels, or sad, or angry (Hulk is always angry, but if he's still angry after turning back into Bruce, then that means something very bad happened and he needs to get to his teammates ASAP). Hulk, in turn, would get the most basic of information from Bruce's experiences. 

So as Bruce learns how everyone has been treating "Spidey" and "Red" (and he feels so guilty, because he's avoided both as much as he could--Wanda out of fear and Peter for his own safety--and that'd clearly made things worse), Hulk understands that Spidey and Red are lonely, like him. When Bruce sees the footage, Hulk understands that Spidey is hurt and Red is tired and howls to get out, but Bruce pushes him down. 

But then they get to the hospital. There are bullets flying and Hydra vehicles parked outside and dozens of agents. The hospital is owned and operated by Hydra. Everyone there is an agent, even the patients. Bruce hears Steve give orders and form a plan and Tony call his suit. But Hulk only sees Bad Things that want to hurt Spidey (and Red, who's still scary but she's like Hammer in that she was mean to Hulk at first but that was a long long long time ago, and Spidey likes her so she must be good, and there are other things to smash so they might as well smash them together). Hulk demands _out_. 

And Bruce lets him out, because he's angry, too. 

Bullets bounce off of Hulk's green skin and it only enrages him further. He takes a car and uses it to smash the other cars. Jewel flies past him, disappearing into the walls. Jewel likes Red, like how Hulk likes Lullaby. But couldn't he have smashed a hole in the wall instead of just disappearing through it? Hulk thinks that would've been much better, so he throws one of the puny Bad People into the wall after Jewel. It makes a nice, big hole. Much better. 

Hulk goes back to smashing, with Shield and Lullaby and the others. They stay away from him, as usual. That's okay. Hulk's used to it. 

Jewel pops back out of the wall. "They're not here!" he shouts. 

Hulk growls and throws his car into the building. All the Bad People are gone now. There's nothing left to smash. 

"Of course they're not here," Lullaby mutters. "Barnes would've known this place was Hydra." 

Hulk smashes another car, making the others jump. "Where Spidey and Red?" he growls. 

"Uh..." Birdie says. 

"We'll find them, big guy," Tin Man says, pulling off his metal face. He's trying to smile. "You know how tough they are." 

"Spidey hurt," Hulk says. "Red tired." 

Shield gives Hulk an odd look, before he says, "They have someone helping them: Bucky. He'll protect them." 

Hulk growls. "Hulk not know 'Bucky.'" 

"I do," Shield says. "Do you trust me?" 

"Yes," Hulk says. 

"Seriously?" Birdie whispers to Lullaby. She shushes him. 

"You trust me, and I trust Bucky," Shield says. "He has a metal arm that's perfect for smashing, and he shoots just like Natasha. He'll keep them safe." 

Hulk grumbles, still not convinced. 

"The sooner we find them, the sooner you can see for yourself," Shield says. "But to find them, we need Bruce back." 

"Why puny Banner?" Hulk growls. Banner can't smash anything, can't keep Hulk's friends safe. He's puny!

"Because we'll be able to find 'Spidey' and 'Red' with the computers, and Bruce can help Tony with that. It'll go much faster that way."

Hulk looks at Tin Man. Tin Man is very good with computers, and so is Puny Banner. Hulk is not. 

"Can you do that?" Shield asks. "Can you bring back Bruce? Because that's what we need right now." 

Hulk still wants to smash things. But there's nothing left to smash here. Red and Spidey aren't here, either. But Banner can find them. 

Besides, Hulk's anger is almost gone now. Now, he's just tired. 

So he gives the body back to Banner. 

Later, Banner catches Steve looking at him strangely. "What?" he asks. 

"Just...I don't think Peter and Wanda are the only ones we've underestimated," Steve says.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	12. XII

The search was fruitless for three more days. 

Then Vision's phone rang. 

After he answered, he put it on speaker. "Peter, are you all right? We saw you get shot." 

Everyone on the quinjet gathered around the phone. Tony started tracking the signal. 

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine," Peter said flippantly. "James patched me up. Sorry it took us so long to get to you; the car broke down halfway through the woods and we had to walk the rest of the way. It was actually kind of fun, like a camping trip, if you ignore the chased-by-Hydra part. Anyway, we're in Bucharest. Can someone come and pick us up, 'cause I've missed a whole week of school and my teachers are gonna kill me..." 

"Peter, it's Steve. We're coming to get you, and we called your school." 

"You did what?!" 

"In disguise," Clint rushed to say. "Congratulations, you have a new uncle Clint. You also have mono." 

There was a pause. Then, "So, if you're my new uncle, does that mean I get the eighteen-year backlog of Christmas and birthday presents?" 

"Not on your life," Clint said, smiling a little. "Pass the phone to Wanda; Vision's getting twitchy." 

"Oh, you think Vision's twitchy? Try keeping the phone away from a telekinetic telepath. Wait your turn, Wanda!" 

"Give me the phone, Peter!" Wanda shouted from the distance. At the sound of her voice, Vision relaxed a little. 

"In a minute. I've got to tell Steve that James is okay, too, or he'll flip out. Hey, don't grab it! I've got sticky spider-fingers! You can't get it!" 

"So you want to be literally glued to the phone while I use it to talk to my boyfriend?" Wanda said. 

There was a heavy pause. Clint was biting on his fist, trying not to laugh. Tony found himself grinning. They heard the phone be shoved into a different pair of hands. "That's it, I'm out of here," Peter said in the distance. 

"Right behind you," a lower, deeper voice grumbled. Steve stiffened, which meant it had to be Bucky. 

"Viz?" Wanda asked. "You there?" 

The Avengers fled to the other side of the quinjet while Vision took the phone off of speaker and found a quiet corner. Tony had a map of Bucharest up, and a little red dot pinging. "They're in a public library. Hey, Vision! Tell them to get to the airport five miles north of them! We can land the jet on the tracks." 

Vision nodded at him before going back to the phone. 

"How come those two never sound like that around us?" Tony muttered, to no one in particular. "First that thing in the park--and I am going to have to ask about that kitchen explosion, because I thought I had the monopoly on explosions--and now this." 

"Peter used to sound like that with us," Natasha said quietly. "We kept shooting him down." 

"I never shot him down. I always encourage smartassery," Tony defended. 

"You treat them like children," Natasha said. "We all do. So they clamp down on anything that may come across as childish when they're around us." 

"I've acted way more childish during battles and nobody seems to mind." 

"We don't treat you like a child," Natasha pointed out. "We actually give you respect." She frowned, looking behind her. "Vision, what are you doing?" 

Vision ignored her, floating in the jet and looking at the shelves above the seats. "Over the third seat on the left?" he said into the phone. He pulled a duffel bag from the shelf and unzipped it. He raised his eyebrow as he pulled a Spider-Man suit from it. "He keeps a spare on the jet? Web-shooters, too?" 

"Seriously?" Tony came over and pulled out the web-shooters. He'd always wanted to get a closer look at the web-shooters, but Peter never spent enough time around the tower for Tony to dissect them with him, and it seemed kind of wrong to look over a critical piece of a teammate's identity without that teammate's approval, at least, and preferably their company so they could bounce ideas back and forth on how to improve it... 

"He has spares hidden all over," Wanda said, her voice tiny in the phone. "Two at the Tower, one at his place, and one on the jet." 

"By 'his place,' you mean 'your place,' right?" Tony asked, ignoring the way Vision was yanking his fingers across his throat in a desperate don't-go-there gesture. 

There was stony silence. Then, " _You told_?!" 

Vision closed his eyes and sighed. "They investigated his aunt when she didn't make any moves to find Peter after the kidnapping and learned how she'd kicked him out. Then, yes, I told them that he was staying at your apartment while you stayed with me." 

"They did _what_ to my aunt?!" 

"Did you put us on speakerphone?" Tony accused, as Vision put the phone on speaker in retaliation. 

"In disguise," Clint said. "Bruce and I went as the new neighbors. You look like a dork in that science fair photo."

"Wow, okay. Change of plans, Wanda: I'm murdering all of them and then we're hitching a ride across the Atlantic. We'll fit in the cargo hold of a plane, won't we?" Peter said. 

Clint rolled his eyes. "You're not gonna kill us." 

"You wanna bet, Bird-Brain?!" 

Clint suddenly became serious. "You won't kill anyone--definitely not your teammates and not even the worst villains--because you didn't kill Harry Osborn or Nigel Smith." 

There was dead silence. The other Avengers were looking at Clint in confusion, even Natasha. But obviously Peter knew what was up. 

"And I'm sorry it took me this long to figure that out," Clint continued. "I never wanted you on the team or to be Spider-Man because I didn't want you to end up like me. But you're already so much stronger than I'll ever be because you're better than that." 

Tony shifted his feet. This just became uncomfortably honest. 

There was some fumbling, and footsteps, and Peter's hurried, "I gotta go." Wanda called after him, then snarled into the phone, "You crossed a line, Barton." 

But the phone didn't hang up. It stayed in the room while Wanda left, calling after Peter. Then it was Barnes's voice. "I, uh...don't know what that was about."

"Join the club," Tony said, setting down the web-shooters. 

"Is Steve there?" 

Steve took the phone and went to the corner. Clint went to the other side of the quinjet. Tony, curiosity gnawing at him, followed. 

"Osborn and Smith?" Tony asked. 

Clint gave a grim smile. "After talking with May Parker, I did some research. Nigel Smith was the reason Peter became Spider-Man. He was a thief. A civilian named Benjamin Parker tried to stop him after he stole from a convenience store and got shot. Died before the ambulance could get there. Peter saw the whole thing; it was his uncle." 

Tony sucked in a breath. 

"Nigel Smith had shaggy blond hair and a star tattoo on his left forearm. Almost all of the criminals Spider-Man started with were blonds, and he always checked their forearms before the police showed up." 

"Did he ever catch him?" Tony asked. 

"Yeah," Clint said. "Just before he joined the team. He'd stopped actively searching: you can tell because the demographics changed. Blonds weren't a target anymore. Smith was breaking into an empty house. Peter webbed him up and recognized the tattoo." Clint looked at Tony. "Did you know that Peter's webs are so thick someone can suffocate in them? It's almost happened a few times, but he always pokes holes in it so they can breathe. And with the super-strength, breaking someone's bones would be a piece of cake." He shook his head. "Smith was dropped off at a police station, webbed up, a wanted poster of Ben Parker's killer stuck to his forehead. No more than a few bruises from the fight." 

Tony stared at him, trying to align this story to the cheerful, if somewhat withdrawn, kid he'd known for the past six months. 

"A little while after his uncle died and he started the Spider-Man thing, Peter started dating a girl in his class, Gwen Stacy," Clint continued. "High school sweethearts. First love, et cetera." 

"Why do I get the feeling this isn't going to end with them walking into the sunset together?" Tony asked. 

Clint gave a grim smile. "Considering the fact that Stacy was seen helping Spider-Man on the sidelines, and how long they were together, it's safe to say she knew about his identity. Last year, Peter became friends with another teenager, Harry Osborn." 

"Rich kid, heir to Osborn Industries," Tony said. "Dad died of something nasty, Harry was diagnosed...didn't he do something crazy to try to stop it?" 

"Injected himself with spider venom, the same kind that made Spider-Man. But unlike with Peter, Osborn got too much. It changed him, twisted him. Ever hear of the Green Goblin?" 

"Yeah...he's sitting in a cell right now, isn't he?" Tony asked. 

"Yeah, for the murder of Gwen Stacy." 

Tony absorbed that, then blew out a gusty breath. "Jesus."

"Right after that, Spider-Man dropped off the grid for four months," Clint said. "I'm surprised he didn't quit altogether." 

Tony knew. He'd tried to quit, had promised Pepper he'd quit, before, during, and after the Mandarin fiasco. But no matter how much of a toll Tony had to pay, Iron Man was too important, too much of a part of him.

"...don't want to put any pressure on you," Steve was saying. Clint and Tony both turned to him. Capsicle had a disbelieving smile on his face. "Seriously? They convinced you to take a look at Avengers Tower? Wanda didn't use any of powers on you, did she?...Really?...Well, yeah, Hydra's a pretty big priority right now. We'd love to have your help...Well, you might have some problems with Natasha, but she has problems with everybody...Okay, I'll see you at the airport...Bye, Jerk." 

"Did you just call your long-lost best friend Jerk?" Tony asked as Steve hung up. 

"He called me Punk," Steve defended, but he was grinning. "We'll be there in an hour."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	13. XIII

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inspired by that airport scene in "Civil War," except the Avengers are all on the same side.

Of course Hydra was waiting for them at the airport. 

Civilians started evacuating as soon as the first Hydra plane landed, agents pouring out. More came via jeeps. A second one shot at the quinjet, blowing up a wing. Tony and Clint barely managed to control its descent enough to sorta-safely crash-land. 

They were all suited up and had their earpieces in, and then ripped them out when they started shrieking. "Dammit, they're blasting on our frequency," Tony snarled. 

"Everyone stay within earshot," Steve ordered as they ran out of the jet. Bruce hulked out and jumped into the air, taking down the second Hydra freighter plane that was still firing at them. Thor, Vision, and Stark followed. Steve counted four more planes, either single-piloted or unmanned, he wasn't sure. There were dozens of ground troops that he, Nat and Clint focused on, and they just kept pouring in, more planes coming in overhead. 

"Next time they'll probably try nuking us," Clint grumbled, shooting his arrows. "This is getting ridiculous."

"One problem at a time," Steve scolded, throwing his shield. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw three people running toward them across the tarmac. They looked like civilians...

Until one of them erupted in red and fired a shot at a jet that was getting uncomfortably close to Vision. 

"Wanda!" Clint cheered. 

Steve felt a...tickle, in the back of his mind. Then there was Wanda's voice: _*Sorry, I'm sorry, I know you don't like me using telepathy but I have to ask: where's Peter's uniform?*_

__

__

_*In the jet,*_ he said, then paused, watching Peter run into the downed jet. _*Can you set up a link with everyone?*_

Wanda gave him an incredulous look across the tarmac. _*Why would I do that?*_

__

*Because we can't use our coms.*

__

*Are you sure--*

__

*Positive. Do it!*

__

He could feel Wanda's squirming hesitation, before she obeyed. 

She left out the Hulk (understandable; they had no idea how he'd react to something like this), but connected to everyone else like this was...unbelievable. They were linked by the weakest of threads, but it was enough for Steve to feel Clint's eerie calm as he fired arrow after arrow, Tony's manic yet controlled energy, Vision's worry, Bucky's annoyance as he punched an agent with his metal hand, Wanda's insecurity and Peter's excited/anxious/exhilarated/relieved to have his uniform back mix. 

Nat faltered a little in her kick, almost getting shot in the process. _*What the--!*_

__

__

_*Wanda's our new com,*_ Steve announced.

_*A little warning next time!*_

Wanda winced. _*Sorry.*_

__

__

_*Tony, what are we dealing with?*_ Steve asked. 

_*UAVs and ground troops. I see two more trucks coming and eight more UAVs,*_ he said grimly. 

Wanda, actually, got excited. _*Pe-ter, there aren't any pilots in the planes,*_ she sang. 

_*Dibs on the oncoming eight!*_ Peter cheered, running out of the jet in full uniform. 

Thor sputtered. _*We can barely hold our own against these metal birds. How are you two going to do it?*_

__

__

_*Yeah, no offense, kids, but these aren't exactly car thieves and cat burglars,*_ Tony added. 

It was a testament to the amount of time Peter and Wanda spent practicing this kind of telepathy, because Steve wouldn't have found it if he hadn't been looking for it. In a deeper layer of their minds was a spike of tired annoyance, hurt, and insecurity, all quickly buried before it could show, either physically or mentally. 

It hit Steve like a punch in the gut. Teammates _should not_ make other teammates feel like that, and when they did they certainly shouldn't try to hide it. 

_*They managed an entire base almost single-handedly,*_ Steve said firmly. _*At the very least, you two can stall until the rest of us get to you.*_

Wanda and Peter were both stunned. Peter was the first to shake it off. "Hey, Hulk!" he called. 

Hulk paused in mid-smash, looking up from the scattered Hydra agents desperately trying to regroup. 

"Wanna play baseball?"

Hulk brightened, almost like a child. He grabbed the nearest Hydra jeep, shook the driver and other agents out of it, and rolled it up until it resembled a baseball bat. Peter JUMPED ONTO HIS BACK (that kid was insane!) as if he were getting a piggy-back ride. "Just get me up high and my webs'll do the rest. That okay with you, big guy?" 

Hulk jumped. 

Peter whooped, and Steve got the full force of his exhilaration and sheer joy. Wanda was right behind him, floating on scarlet swirls. 

_*Since when can you fly?*_ Tony asked, nothing but pure curiosity in his tone. 

Wanda scrunched up a little, that insecurity coming back. _*Oh, uh...a little while now. I'm still working on it.*_

And you didn't tell us? Steve wanted to ask. But he didn't, because he knew the answer. 

_*Steve, a little help here?*_ Bucky called, jerking Steve's attention to the ground. 

Steve grinned as he found himself fighting side-by-side with his best friend again. The trucks with reinforcements came, and Steve was almost gleeful as he greeted them with his shield. He could feel Bucky's vicious satisfaction in the back of his mind. 

It took maybe five minutes before the agents got smart and pulled a retreat. 

"Perfect," Steve said, catching his breath. "Let's go help the kids." 

"Uh, Steve," Bucky said. He pointed across the tarmac. 

Wanda was in the center of the fight, on the ground and fully shielded against the UAV's bullets. There was another shield arcing over the entire fight, stretching maybe half a mile in diameter, trapping the UAVs so they couldn't fly off and away. A bolt of scarlet energy would occasionally shoot out of Wanda's hands and hit a UAV, disorienting it, but most of her attention seemed to be on the shields. 

Peter and Hulk did most of the attacking. Apparently Peter's spider-stickiness extended to Wanda's powers, because he'd perch in one corner, shoot a web onto a UAV, and use his super-strength to swing it to Hulk. Hulk swung at the target with his improvised baseball bat, sending it smashing into the opposite side of the shield. Then Peter would jump onto a new vantage point, often using a UAV for his webs to swing around, before starting the process again (usually using that UAV as the next "baseball"). Already they were down to two UAVs. 

_*Wanda, are you all right?*_ Vision asked. 

_*I don't know how long I can hold this,*_ she admitted. Steve could taste her fatigue. 

_*We're done with our end. Let go and the rest of us can handle it,*_ Steve said. He quickly added: _*You guys are doing absolutely fantastic, but Tony's itching for more fight and I don't want to have to put up with his complaining.*_

__

__

_*Hey!*_ Tony protested, without any real heat. 

Wanda and Peter both glowed at the praise. She waited until Peter was off the shield and attached to a UAV before dropping them, staggering in exhaustion. Tony and Thor zoomed in on the spider-less UAV, lightning crackling and guns firing, while Peter tore into his target with his super strength, ripping out wires. The UAV swirled and spun and dove to the ground. Peter jumped off and landed in a delicate roll before it crashed. 

_*You'd better not have pulled your stitches,*_ Bucky warned. 

_*...no comment,*_ Peter said sheepishly. 

*Dammit, squirt--* 

*Don't call me a squirt, I'm taller than you!*

*You are not.*

*You're not,* Wanda agreed, sitting on the ground while Vision flew to her. _*He's a quarter of an inch taller.*_

__

__

_*Traitor!*_ Peter accused. 

_*Okay, I'm getting a headache,*_ Natasha called. 

_*Sorry.*_ Wanda cut the links, and everyone's mind was their own again. 

Steve blinked a few times, re-orienting himself, before jogging over to the kids (he should probably stop calling them kids, but they _were_ kids, even if they'd done so much). "Everyone all right?" 

"I might pass out soon," Wanda warned, Vision sitting next to her and pulling her to his chest. "Not sure yet." 

"I need to clean my uniform," Peter said, poking at the bloodstain on his torso, right over the bullet wound. "Again." 

"How bad is that?" Steve asked. 

"Not bad. Nowhere near any arteries or major organs." 

"Liar," Bucky said. "It nicked a vein, but I stitched it up."

"Like I said: not bad," Peter retorted. "So, Cap, what's the pla--gahh!" 

Hulk came up behind Peter and grabbed him in a hug, then went to Wanda and plucked her off the ground as she squealed. They both squirmed to get away, but it wasn't happening. Hulk trudged back to the busted jet, carrying the kids. "Spidey and Red go home now," he said. 

"Uh, Tony," Steve said. 

"I'll call the embassy."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	14. XIV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> May Parker is a secret BAMF. Who knew?

As it turned out, Tony had a rich friend in Bucharest who was more than willing to loan them her private jet. Bucky fell asleep almost instantly. Apparently, he hadn't slept since meeting Peter and Wanda due to Hydra chasing them. Steve would bet his boots that Wanda and Peter had offered to take shifts, and Bucky had refused, not because of them being kids or his trust issues, but because he put mother hens to shame and wouldn't want an injured teen or overworked mutant to not get their proper rest. He slumped in his seat, his back against the plane window, and was snoring softly in minutes. 

Wanda and Peter were a bit slower. Peter had no qualms about sleeping in his dirty uniform (once his stitches were tended to) and fell asleep curled up in one of the aisle seats. Wanda had her head pillowed against Vision's chest; once Vision had managed to pry her away from Hulk, they'd been joined at the hip. 

All the other Avengers either followed their example or were flying the plane. Steve sat near the front in one of the reverse seats, watching the kids with a small smile on his face. He and all the other Avengers over the age of twenty (plus Vision) had a long road of repentance ahead of them. Steve suspected they'd only scratched the surface of the issues surrounding Wanda and Peter. But for now, the youngest team members were safe. That's all Steve needed right now. 

Until Peter began struggling with a nightmare. 

He whimpered, curling up tighter, and began shaking. Steve stood, intending to sooth him or, failing that, wake him up. Wanda beat him to it. Without moving from Vision or even glancing at Peter, she lifted her hand. Scarlet tendrils went from her fingers to Peter's head. He relaxed immediately. 

"What did you do?" Steve hissed. 

"Stopped the nightmare," Wanda mumbled into Vision's chest; the crimson being hadn't stirred once. "Similar to what I did with you when we were enemies, except I pulled from happiness instead of fear." 

Steve looked back at Peter. The boy had a small, content smile on his sleeping face. 

He forced himself to relax. If he had learned nothing else from this, it was that Peter and Wanda trusted each other explicitly. Wanda was probably closer to Peter than she was with Vision. If Peter let her dabble in his mind and ease his nightmares with her powers, then Steve wasn't going to get in the middle of that, no matter his own prejudices on the issue. 

Other than that, the flight was uneventful. Tony had their limousine driver take them all to the Tower. Peter didn't protest, so he was either okay with sleeping in one of the guest rooms for the night (oh, Steve had to talk to Tony about that) or he hadn't thought that far ahead yet. 

Nick Fury was waiting for them on the communal floor. 

"Who'd you piss off and can I give them a medal?" Tony asked. 

Steve looked at Fury's face and winced. His good eye was sporting a decent shiner. 

Fury glared at Tony before turning to Peter. "Your aunt has a mean backhand." 

Peter blanched. Steve felt his stomach drop. 

"Apparently, there was a story about Hawkeye in the tabloids," Fury continued. "Mrs. Parker doesn't usually read that stuff, but she couldn't help but recognize the face as a 'new neighbor' of hers she'd met just a couple of days ago." 

Clint and Bruce both cringed. 

"She would've come here, but you were all out of town. So she went to me. I don't know how, but she got into my office and asked me to explain why two of the Avengers were in her house." 

"And what did you say, exactly?" Peter asked in a small voice. 

A door slammed somewhere behind Fury. "PETER BENJAMIN PARKER!" 

Bruce summed it up rather perfectly: "Uh-oh..." 

"Do you want help?" Wanda asked. 

Peter was still an unhealthy shade of ghastly pale. He shook his head. "No, I got this. But, uh...she might want to talk to some of you guys later. Whoever's in charge, so probably Steve." 

"I can talk to her now if you want," Steve offered. He meant it. And besides, Peter was exhausted. This could wait until tomorrow. 

"Nah, let's not keep her waiting," Peter said, and marched off to his doom. 

"Oh, this is not gonna be pretty," Tony commented. 

"I'll get the hot cocoa and rum," Wanda mumbled, going to the kitchen. 

"Rum?" Natasha echoed, following her. "Hot chocolate goes with vodka." 

"Peter prefers it with rum." 

"How would you two know that, exactly?" Tony asked. 

Wanda blushed. 

"Wait, have you been pilfering my stash?!"

"Only for special occasions," she grumbled. "Vodka for my birthday, brandy for May Parker's, and rum for Ben Parker's birthday." 

"If you'd asked, I would've given you the good stuff," Tony said. 

Wanda's blush deepened, but she covered it with, "Stealing's more fun." 

Steve shook his head and went into the living room. Bucky followed him, and said, a little uncertainly, "That aunt sounded just like Mrs. Fletcher, don't you think?" 

Steve froze, then grinned. "Yeah. Yeah, she kind of did. You remember that?" 

"I've been working on it," Bucky said vaguely. "She's the one who yelled at you for stealing her cat, right?" 

"She wanted to drown the kittens," Steve protested. "And Mrs. Fletcher was much scarier than May Parker." 

"Maybe because it's not _you_ May Parker is after." 

"...that is a very good point."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	15. XV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> May has words with her nephew, and then the other Avengers.

Thor was eavesdropping. Had his mother still been alive, she would've smacked him upside the head for it (probably in a very similar fashion Lady May had done with Fury). 

But he had good reason. When he and Loki had been children, his little brother would constantly be berated by their parents. Thor could get away with murder while Loki would be reprimanded for the littlest things. Even as a child, Thor could see the injustice in that. So whenever Loki was being scolded, Thor would eavesdrop. Most of the time he'd stay quiet until after and tell Loki that their parents were being foolish and refute everything that had been said during the lecture. Other times, if it was getting particularly bad, Thor would stage a loud entrance, with a complaint about one of the staff or cheerful news about something he'd done earlier that day. Either Loki would sneak out of the room during the distraction, or their parents would simply cut the lecture off short and give Loki a lesser sentence so they could spend time with Thor. It didn't always work (especially in the beginning, when their parents would see right through the act), but when it did Thor and Loki would laugh about it together. 

What? His brother had been the god of mischief. Thor wasn't the most tactful person, but he'd picked up a few things. 

So now Thor stood in the dark hallway, outside the room where May and Peter were having their little "talk." He'd put his hammer away and changed into his resting clothes during the journey, and his feet were bare so as not to make a sound. 

The way the room was built (a guest quarters, with a water facilities and large bed), there was a sharp corner were Thor could actually step into the room and, from his angle, see Peter and May in the mirror. 

May's eyes widened when she saw Peter in his uniform. He looked down at himself, surprised; he must've forgotten he was wearing it. "Um..." His shoulders slumped. "Yeah, this is exactly what it looks like." 

"Start talking," May ordered. 

"I got bit by a radioactive spider, got cool powers, and started looking for Uncle Ben's killer," Peter said in a rush. "I found him, by the way. Took him to the police." 

Thor winced. He'd overheard the conversation between Stark and Clint about this. 

"I know," May sighed. "But you're not the police. You're a _teenage boy_!" 

"With great power comes great responsibility," Peter said firmly. "Uncle Ben told me that." 

"Don't you _dare_ bring him into this!" 

"I'm not! I'm saying that I have these powers and because of that I have a responsibility to use them!" 

"No, you don't! There are other superheroes--we are standing in a building full of them!" May snapped. "They're the professionals. Leave this to them." 

"They weren't there when Dr. Connors went psycho and tried to turn everyone in New York into giant lizards," Peter pointed out. "They weren't there to fight Oscorp. They weren't there against the Green Goblin, or the Rhino, or--" 

"They're here now!" 

"And now I can't just stop! Spider-Man's too big," Peter said. "Look at the crime rates. When I'm out there, people don't do crime. When I'm not, people are in danger. Don't you see? I'm helping people." 

"You're getting hurt," May said, and now there were tears in her eyes. "There's blood on your clothes!" 

Peter covered his wound. "It's not mine." 

"Don't you dare lie to me!" 

Peter winced. "Okay, yeah, it's mine. But I never get _seriously_ hurt. Just cuts and bruises." 

"Assuming I believe that--which I don't--why did you join the Avengers? Why not stay with the smaller things? The less dangerous things?" 

Peter sighed, pulling at his hair. "You remember that alien invasion a few months ago? The one after the Chitauri?" 

May's eyes narrowed. "The one where you broke your leg under a 'fallen beam'?"

"That was not a lie," Peter promised. "I actually was stuck under the ceiling when it fell. I just left out the part where I was in uniform and trying to get all the civilians out--which I did." 

May glared at him. 

"Anyway, the doctors were patching me up and Steve came to talk to me...and I started thinking that...well, when big stuff like that happens I _do_ go out there, even if it's just behind-the-scenes stuff like evac, because they need me. They need Spider-Man. And it's safer to do that stuff when you're on a team, you know? I know someone always has my back." 

Thor winced, because he knew that was a blatant lie. He had failed--miserably failed--as the Man of Spiders' shield-brother. 

"And it's not like I'm a _real_ Avenger," Peter continued. "It's not like I'm facing off against Dr. Doom or Loki or any of the big boys. They always give me the safest, smallest stuff to do. If we were a company I'd be the intern who just gets them coffee." 

That felt like a punch in the gut.

"That's not what I'm seeing on the news," May protested. 

"You're the one who said the news is nothing but twisted reality dressed up for entertainment," Peter pointed out. "For every time I land in a fight, a real fight, the others get, like, ten fights." 

"You're still getting shot at, and stabbed, and thrown around, and run over by cars...to hell with it! You're not Spider-Man anymore." 

Thor was just about to step in when Peter said, with more stone and steel in his voice than Thor had ever heard from him: "No." 

"Excuse me?" May asked. 

"I became a legal adult five days ago."

May was fuming. Peter just held her gaze, not moving. 

May drooped and sighed. "Why didn't you tell me?" she asked quietly. 

Peter swallowed, lowering his head. "Gwen Stacy." 

May cringed. "She knew?" 

"Yeah." He gave a weak, watery laugh. "Harry Osborn did, too, but of the two choices, y-you probably w-wouldn't become a v-villain..." 

May grabbed him and crushed him to her chest in a hug as Peter started crying. May rubbed his back, making soothing noise while her own tears fell. 

"I tried, Aunt May," Peter cried, his voice small against her shoulder. "I tried to save her. And Harry, too. I _knew_ something bad would happen if I gave him my blood and I was right, but I couldn't stop it, just like I couldn't stop Connors from killing Captain Stacy and it was all my fault, I should've done better..." 

"No, no no no, Peter, honey. Honey, look at me." May took Peter's face in her hands so he was looking at her. "Captain Stacy was a police officer. He knew the risks better than you and he still went in. And you can't save people from themselves; Harry would've ended up like that or dead anyway. And as for Gwen...honey, she loved you, as much as you loved her. Nothing on Earth would've stopped her from being with you, either as Peter or Spider-Man. She knew those risks, too, and she knew that you are worth it." 

Peter's face crumpled, and he dropped his forehead back onto May's shoulder. She sat them both down on the edge of the bed and kept rubbing his back, until he had no more tears. 

Thor probably should've left a while ago, but he found himself rooted to the spot. He couldn't move.

"You've been staying here, then?" May asked quietly. 

"No," Peter said, his voice muffled. "At Wanda's place." 

"Wanda? Is that the assassin?" 

"No, that's Natasha. Wanda's the Scarlet Witch, with the red lights and telekinesis and stuff." 

"Ah. Is she really the Vision's girlfriend or that just tabloid nonsense?" 

"No, they're together," Peter said. "Practically soulmates, but I don't think Vision has the balls to admit that she's, like, five times more powerful than him. That or he just doesn't get it." 

May smiled for the first time. "He seems like a smart young man. He'll get it." 

"I don't know. He's not even a year old yet." 

May chuckled. "Your friends are very strange." 

"I know." 

She hesitated. "Do you want to come back?" 

Peter pulled away from her and rubbed his face. "I don't know. If I'm not at the house, then no one can trace Spider-Man to you. And Wanda's place is actually closer to school, but they might insist I actually live here with the Hydra thing..." 

"Hydra thing?" May's eyes narrowed. "What Hydra thing?" 

"Uh..." 

That was Thor's cue. He crept back into the hallway, then made sure his footsteps were heard as he came into the room. He beamed. "Ah, Peter! Hope I'm not interrupting, but we need to feast!" 

Peter's stomach gurgled. He blushed. "Yeah, I guess I could eat...Who's cooking?" 

"I'm not certain, but considering the fatigue of our comrades, we may have the city's servants deliver it for us." 

"Fatigue?" May asked. 

"We've been travelling over the Atlantic Ocean," Thor explained. "It was a very long journey." 

"What were you doing over there?" 

"Fighting villainy, of course! But not to worry; they were but minor beings. No match for the Man of Spiders!" Not a lie, just not the full truth. 

"Minor beings with guns, maybe?" May asked worriedly. 

Thor clamped Peter's shoulder and grinned. "Your nephew stayed close to the Scarlet Witch and our green berserker friend. No harm came to him. Come! Let us eat!" 

\--

FRIDAY had ordered the group's usual from their favorite Thai place and Fury had left by the time Peter and May Parker came back, with Thor of all people in tow. The other Avengers noticed them come in, but other than maybe get a bit quiet in their conversation didn't intercept them. Steve noticed that both Parkers' eyes were a bit red, but he didn't say anything. 

"Mrs. Parker, do you want something to eat?" he asked instead, because he mother didn't raise him to be rude to guests (no matter how rudely they entered his house; Fury had had that black eye coming, anyway). "I'm pretty sure we can find something in the fridge." 

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Wanda pour two mugs of hot chocolate. She put one hand near the rum and looked at Peter, who gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head. She filled the mugs with more cocoa, added whipped cream and sprinkles, and gave one to him. 

"If you have a snack, I'll eat," May said. "Otherwise, I'm fine. I assume by the uniform...Captain Rogers?" 

"Steve, please." He offered his hand and was pleased when May shook it. "I'm sorry I wasn't able to meet you before. SHIELD can get pretty paranoid."

"Clearly," May said tightly. "But you're the one who approved the orders to keep this secret." 

_Oh, dear. Here we go._ "Those orders weren't mine to give," Steve said. "I approve who joins the team and who doesn't, but I don't get to decide who knows their identities." 

"I see. And what made you approve a teenager?" 

"Aunt May," Peter pleaded. 

Steve gave a tight smile. "Because I've been that teenager, Mrs. Parker, and I worked with them long before the Avengers. We're stubborn and always find a way to get out there, even if it's the stupidest thing in the world to do. You can't stop them; you can only prepare them." 

May Parker softened a little, mollified. She sighed. "I guess...is that hot chocolate?" 

"Do you want yours with rum?" Wanda asked gently. 

May seemed to seriously consider it for a moment, before she shook her head. 

The food arrived, and everyone's attention turned to making sure everyone got their order. Steve almost missed May quietly ask, "You're Wanda?" 

"Mm-hm. Nice to meet you." 

"...thank you." 

A beat. Then, "You're welcome." 

They were all ravenous, and soon the living room was a mess, silent but for the sound of chewing. May Parker sipped her cocoa. "So...what exactly were Hulk and Hawkeye doing in my house?" 

Clint and Bruce both turned to Peter, who blinked at them in surprise. "Uh..." He looked at Wanda. 

She sighed. "There's really no subtle way to say this...but Peter and I got kidnapped a few days ago..." 

"What?!" 

"And then broke ourselves out once the knock-out drugs wore off," Peter quickly added. "Scored a free trip to Europe, too." 

"You mean the Avengers got you out," May corrected. 

"No," all of the other Avengers said. 

Wanda and Peter were both visibly surprised at the sudden defense. May blinked at the team. Steve elaborated: "By the time we found out where they were and got there, they'd already handled it. We were little more than chauffeurs for the trip back." 

May glared at him. 

"...and there may have been a struggle against the Hydra agents who followed them and wanted them back," Steve amended reluctantly. 

Bucky smirked into his dim sum. "That was a good fight." 

"Only because you showed up late," Tony said. 

"What did you say, Stark?" 

"Chil-dren," May scolded. 

Tony and Bucky both sulked into their food. 

"Can we keep you?" Bruce asked. 

"You're stuck with me as long as Peter's in this group." May looked at her watch and frowned. "...and when I don't have to get to work." 

"You work a night shift?" 

"No, but it'll take forty-five minutes to get home and into a fresh set of clothes..." 

"I could take you tomorrow morning if you want to spend the night," Peter offered. But the way he was smirking told Steve that he was up to something. 

May knew it, too, and she figured it out a lot faster than he did. She went pale. "No! No no no, you are not swinging me through the city on those spindly little webs!" 

"Oh, come on!" Peter teased. "It'll be fun!" 

"No!" 

"Well, if you prefer, Tony, Thor and Vision can fly..." 

May almost slammed her hot chocolate on the table in her scrambled haste to stand up. "That's it, I'm out of here." 

"Vision can also phase through buildings," Wanda said, smiling sweetly. 

Tony picked it up. "And Hulk can jump over three miles in one jump..." 

"I'm going, I'm going!" May cried, snatching her purse. She pointed to Peter, "You are calling or at least texting me every day you're not in my house. _Especially_ after a fight. And if you can't, get someone else to do it." 

Peter shrank in his seat a little and nodded. "Uh-huh. Got it." 

May kissed Peter on the head before she left. 

"Well, nothing blew up," Tony said after a pause. "I call that a success."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	16. XVI

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve and Wanda still have issues

"...don't have live in it if you don't want to. But it's yours either way, so deal with it," Tony was saying as he and Peter stepped into the general floor. 

Steve looked up from his breakfast. They'd been back on home soil for a day and a half now. Peter and Wanda had spent almost all of yesterday sleeping. Now Peter was insisting on going back to school, but Tony had gotten to him first and showed him the floor of Avengers Tower that was now his. He'd taken Wanda, too, to show her her floor--even though she was essentially living with Vision it was a meaningful gesture--and, to Steve's knowledge, she was still there. Given the dazed look on Peter's face, it'd been a bit overwhelming. 

"Anyway, happy belated birthday," Tony said. "I was going to give it to you last week on the big day, maybe stick a cake in the fridge or something, but...well, Romania's not a bad place to visit." 

"That's...wow," Peter said. "Thanks, Tony." 

"Also, I stuffed the wardrobe with Spider-Man clothing. They have PJs with little yous on them..." 

"Okay, I'm out of here," Peter announced. 

"Hey, wait." Steve grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl and tossed it. "Breakfast." 

Peter munched on it on his way out. Tony went to get coffee. He and Steve shared a look. "Baby steps." 

"Giving him an apartment is a baby step?" Steve asked. 

"Should've happened on Day One," Tony grumbled. "I'm making Bucky a new arm and I don't even know him." 

"Does he need a new arm?" Steve asked, alarmed. 

"Probably not." 

Steve rolled his eyes and finished his pancakes. He'd finished his morning jog and had promised Bucky they'd look over some Hydra files (Bucky had managed to copy some from the facility before blowing it up). 

"Sergeant Barnes is in Miss Maximoff's room, Cap'n," FRIDAY said when he asked. 

Steve frowned. That was an odd place for him to be. 

Wanda's floor still smelled like citrus-scented cleaner, and looked more like a fancy hotel suite than a home. Steve suspected that, barring any blow-ups with Vision, it'd probably stay like this. 

Until he walked into the kitchen. It took up half of the floor, and was stuffed with more appliances than Steve knew could possibly be used in a kitchen. 

Steve remembered something about this floor once belonging to Tony's head chef before he moved to Italy. 

Smiling, Steve rounded two more corners and knocked on a partially-closed door. "Wanda, have you seen Bucky any-- _Maximoff_!"

Wanda sprang away from Bucky, who was sitting on the bed. Her eyes were red and there were scarlet tendrils floating around Bucky's head, but they were fading fast. Bucky himself was dazed, unaware of what was happening. 

"What is wrong with you?" Steve demanded, getting between her and Bucky and pushing her away. "He's had enough people in his head for the last few decades, don't you think?"

"I--he said...I was just..." Wanda stammered, her eyes going brown and watery. 

"Get out." 

Despite the fact that it was her floor and her room, Wanda left. 

Steve leaned over Bucky, brushing the shaggy hair from his glazed eyes. Anger bubbled beneath his skin; Bucky looked far too close to the Winter Soldier. 

"Dammit, Wanda," Steve growled, stepping back. "FRIDAY, can you scan him, make sure nothing's about to give out?" 

"Scanning now." 

Steve waited two tense minutes. Bucky's metal arm twitched. 

"Scan complete. Nothing's wrong with him physiologically, Cap'n," FRIDAY reported. 

So now Steve just had to worry about the psychological, and pray that Wanda hadn't bumped something around in there that triggered the Winter Soldier. He'd just gotten Bucky back; he was _not_ losing him. 

Finally the red faded. Bucky's eyes fluttered shut, and when he opened them they were clear. He frowned. "Steve?" 

Steve breathed a massive sigh of relief. "Hey, Bucky. How you feelin'?" 

"Fine. Usual disorientation. Where's Wanda?" 

"I sent her out," Steve said. 

"Why?" 

Steve gave him a look. "Because she was putzing around in your head!" 

Bucky's frowned deepened. "Yeah, I asked her to help me with my memories." 

Steve paused. "What? Why?" 

Bucky brushed the hair from his eyes. "It started right after the facility. I knew there was a backup base nearby, but I couldn't remember where. Peter convinced Wanda to help..." 

"And you let her? You'd only just met her!" 

"It was a desperate situation," Bucky said. "And if she'd wanted in my head, she would've done it. But she never forced it. She waited until she had my permission and didn't go any further. That...she respects me." 

"And...it worked?" 

"The first time she bumped into a few of the wrong memories, but yes, it worked. We stayed away from that hospital. I decided I wanted more of my memories back, and she agreed. She probably shouldn't have. There are some...really bad things in there. But she said she'd seen worse, that she didn't mind." He looked around the room. "Seriously, though, where is she?" 

Steve rubbed his eyes, and wondered if Tony and Bruce could whip up a time machine so he could go and punch himself. God dammit. "Um...Let's just say that if she'd been here, my mam would be twisting my ear bad." 

\--

Wanda had done something--either with technology or her powers--to hide from FRIDAY, so Steve had to look for her the old-fashioned way. It took an hour and a half. She was on the roof, curled up in a ball against the ledge and looking over the city. 

"Wanda?" Steve called. 

She curled up tighter, as if expecting a blow. 

Steve slowly sat next to her, careful not to touch. "Bucky told me what really happened. I'm sorry, I jumped to conclusions." 

Wanda shook her head, running her fingers through her hair. Her eyes were wet and bloodshot. "When Pietro and I got our powers, he said I was the lucky one, because of what I can do," she said. "He was wrong." 

Steve was floored. Wanda hadn't so much as breathed Pietro's name since joining the Avengers. Not in Steve's hearing, at least. 

"People are afraid of me," she muttered. "Normal people, Tony, Vision. You." 

"Yes..." Steve said at length. "And we're wrong to be afraid of you." 

Wanda snorted. 

"We didn't start off on the best foot," Steve continued. "That's clouded my judgment, made me afraid of what you _can_ do without considering what you _will_ or _will not_ do." 

"I did invade your mind and try to kill you," Wanda pointed out. 

"Thor tried to kill me," Steve replied. "Natasha and Nick lied to me, tried to get me to think it was still the 1940s when I woke up. Tony's almost gotten me killed more times than I care to count. Hell, _Bucky_ tried to kill me, and I trust him more than anyone else." 

"That just proves you have poor judgment." 

"Sometimes I do," Steve admitted. "And when I make a mistake I do my best to fix it." 

"Mm." Wanda still didn't look at him. Then she dropped the bombshell: "I think I should quit the Avengers." 

Steve bit his tongue to avoid spilling the first thing the came to mind, which was a pathetic _No, please don't, please give us one more chance.*_

"Okay," he said slowly, "I can understand why you would think that. We've essentially treated you like dirt." 

Wanda frowned. "You've given me a home. Food, water, safety." 

"While demanding that you suppress your powers and then shame you when you do something extraordinary because it scares us," Steve said. "That's not what a good team does, and I'm sorry." He swallowed. "So, if you want to leave, I won't stop you. I'll make sure nobody else stops you. But I ask you to wait before you go." 

"Why?" Wanda asked numbly. 

"Because while you were gone, we realized we were being idiots. The whole team. And we want to fix this," Steve said. "So far I've done a horrible job, and I apologize again. You've already given us more chances than I even know. I'm asking for one more. Please." 

Wanda's eyes stayed glued to the skyline. But after an eternity where the only sound Steve could hear was the pounding of his heart, she nodded. "Okay. I'll stay."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	17. XVII

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers realize they're not the only bullies in Peter's life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, I've created a monster.  
> I love all you commentators and kudos-givers. Thank you so much! :)

Life after the Hydra kidnapping got...weird. 

Aunt May called and texted Peter all the time, especially when Spider-Man or any of the Avengers were called. Peter had seen that one coming, and when there wasn't a crisis going on (like the sorcerer attack three days after the kidnapping, but that had been a minor blip on Peter's radar; he'd barely done anything) their conversations were actually...really nice. Peter could actually tell her about what was going on, whether it was gossiping about Wanda and Vision's relationship--usually while Wanda was in earshot, just to get her to laugh with outrageous stories he came up with on the fly--or gushing about a scientific breakthrough Tony or Bruce had, or some Howling Commandos story Steve told. He and Aunt May spent more time talking to each other than they ever had before. He moved most of his things from Wanda's apartment back to Aunt May's. The rest of his stuff went to his new rooms at the Tower, but he only crashed there about once a week, when it was late and he was too tired to go home. Sometimes when he went to Avengers Tower for a meeting Aunt May would load him up with snacks to bring for the others. They may or may not have gotten Fury addicted to her lemon cakes. 

But that wasn't what was weirding Peter and Wanda out. It was the other Avengers. 

Thor started talking to them, without implying that Peter was a chicken-shit who'd turn tail or that Wanda was an evil sorceress who'd betray them at the first opportunity. Apparently, Thor and Wanda shared a love for dogs and were not above stuffed animals. The man had a pillow pet collection that shamed most toy stores. He asked Peter to help him figure out email so he could send "digital letters to my Jane." Peter had almost fallen over in shock, but he'd helped. 

Tony came to him with ideas for a new web-shooter design, and they spent an entire weekend working on them in the lab. Wanda had had to drag both of them out to feed them, and only with the promise of her homemade lasagna, which Tony hadn't tried yet. She was now able to get him to leave the lab, his suit, probably even the country with that lasagna. 

Bruce stayed his shy and awkward self, but he started talking to them, too. Usually only one small conversation a day. With Peter, it was usually about science. With Wanda, cuisine. Bruce had traveled the world, after all, and knew how to cook. It usually dwindled into a (friendly) argument over whether Polish or Indian food was better. 

Hulk, on the other hand, was practically glued to "Spidey" and "Red." One time during a battle, there had been no need for a Code Green. But then Wanda had gotten hit by one of the giant lobster-monsters they'd been fighting (she'd been fine, just a concussion and bruised ribs, but they hadn't known that in the heat of the moment). Hulk had come out lightning-fast. Bruce had apologized profusely after that, but Tony had snatched a dozen pictures of Hulk carrying a dazed Wanda off-site bridal style, so everyone, sans Wanda and Bruce, considered it a win. 

Speaking of battles, Steve started giving them more challenging tasks, which Aunt May had not been happy about, but Peter and Wanda were thrilled. And giving them compliments after battles. Even asking Wanda to use her telepathy a few times. 

Clint didn't yell at Peter anymore (unless he did something really stupid). Or snap at him (unless he tried to refuse medical). Or tell him he shouldn't be an Avenger or Spider-Man (but he did say that Peter and Wanda were both too young to be doing this and really should wait a few years, but he also said that he knew they were too stubborn and thick-skulled to listen to reason). He told them about his wife and kids (which, holy shit, Clint was a _dad_?) and Wanda cooed over pictures of baby Nathaniel. Peter had blushed when he saw a picture of Cooper dressed as Spider-Man for Halloween.

Natasha and Vision were the only ones acting halfway normal. Vision was just a bit more protective of Wanda than usual. Natasha avoided them like the plague.

The only thing that stayed constant was school. Classes were hard. Teachers were unforgiving. Other students were assholes. Normal. Just what Peter needed. 

So of course it didn't last. 

\-- 

Flash usually avoided his face. When he did hit Peter, it was on the torso, or the arms. But either he'd been angrier than usual or sloppy or something, because Peter walked out of school that day with a black eye. 

Nothing would've come of it if Peter had gone home. But Tony had asked him to come in to talk about a Spider-Man suit upgrade, and Peter knew that if he left Tony alone he'd end up with iron armor with ridiculous little spiders painted on. 

And even then, it wouldn't have caused a fuss. Peter was hardly the first person of Avenger Tower to get a black eye. But he had the rotten luck of running into Natasha. 

Literally running into her. He'd had his head down and hood up and was reading from a tablet, studying up for the last history test of the semester before finals, and Natasha was always so damn _quiet_ , and they'd ended up on a collision course. 

"Sorry! Sorry," Peter said, clutching his tablet. 

Natasha smoothed out her hair, then looked at Peter's face. Pre-kidnapping, she wouldn't have asked. "What happened to you?" 

Peter shrugged, turning his face on instinct so Natasha couldn't see the black eye. Not that it mattered, since Steve and Clint were also in the room and had also seen it. "Patrol last night. Got sloppy. Sorry." 

Natasha narrowed her eyes. "Did you really just try to lie to me?"

Peter froze, then rolled his eyes. "Come on, if you weren't a super-spy you'd have absolutely believed me." 

Steve set his book down and came over to Peter, looking worried. "What happened?" 

"Nothing," Peter insisted. "Just some jerks at school. Look, Tony asked me to help him with some stuff, so I'm just gonna..." 

"Good idea," Clint cheered. "Keeping him alone in the lab for too long usually causes explosions." 

Relieved to be off the hook, Peter left the room for the workshop. 

Well, at least he thought he was off the hook. 

The next day Peter went to English class, his least favorite because Flash and every single one of his friends had it, too, and the teacher Mr. Burkson never paid attention so the bullies got away with...well, with giving Peter a black eye. 

Peter tried to time it so he came in just as the bell rang, so Flash wouldn't have time to do anything before the lesson began. Didn't work out that way, and Flash grabbed him by the collar as soon as he came in. "'Morning, punk. We didn't get much of a chance to talk yesterday, so we've got to make up for lost time." 

Peter stifled a groan and braced himself. 

Flash yelped and let go of Peter. Peter staggered back, staring. The teacher was twisting Flash's ear. 

It wasn't Mr. Burkson. 

"That's enough of that," Natasha said, pushing Flash toward the seats. "Everyone sit down." 

All students, except Flash, obeyed. He rounded on Natasha, who was dressed in a white blouse and pencil skirt. "What the hell is your problem, bitch?" 

"An insecure jackass who's on the fast tract to being expelled. What's your abusive mother going to say about that?" Natasha said. "Sit." 

A dazed Flash took his seat. 

_What are you doing?_ Peter mouthed when Natasha was looking at him. 

She ignored him and went to the board. "I'm Mrs. Rushman, your substitute teacher. Mr. Burkson's under the weather today, so you get to deal with me." She looked right at Flash as she said it. He shrank in his seat. 

The lesson itself...actually went pretty well. Natasha could make Shakespeare sound _interesting_. Peter might've enjoyed himself if Flash hadn't been sending him death glares the whole time. 

Until, while Natasha was weaving through the rows of seats while talking to the students, she dropped a folded piece of paper on Flash's desk. When he read it, he turned an unhealthy shade of white. When class ended, he rushed out of the room. 

"Oh, Peter," Natasha called. "Your uncle Clint called; he'll be driving you home today." 

Peter stared at her. "Ooooookaaaaay..."

The rest of the day went...very smoothly. Nobody bothered Peter; they either ignored him as usual (99% of the student body) or actively avoided him (Flash & Co.). Peter felt like he was walking through a cloud: light-headed and lost. 

Clint was waiting for him at the front doors in an SUV. Peter numbly climbed in, confusion starting to give way to anger. "What the hell is going on?" 

Clint smirked as he started driving. "Natasha did the substitute teacher, didn't she? I would've gone with the janitor; that's what I did when Lila was getting bullied. Steve wanted to just talk to the principal, but when we pulled up your record we saw that you and your aunt've already tried that. We could've blackmailed him, but he's pretty clean. Would've taken too long to find proper dirt or come up with it." 

"What?" Peter shook his head, trying to make sense of everything. "What are you talking about?" 

Clint gave him a look. "We talked to Wanda before doing anything. She didn't tell us anything personal, so you can get that look off your face, but she did tell us that this has been going on since seventh grade." 

"Pretty sure that is personal," Peter growled. "It's none of your business! What did Natasha do to Flash, anyway?" 

"Well, since we couldn't blackmail the principal..." 

Peter face-palmed. 

Clint looked at him out of the corner of his eye. "I've got a theory about you." 

"I don't think I want to hear it," Peter grumbled. 

"Too bad. Now, you've been taking shit from bullies like Flash for five years, only reporting it to adults four times--that we could find on paper, anyway--and haven't ever hit back since getting suspended for fighting in seventh grade, which I imagine was you acting in self-defense rather than acting like a l'il jackass."

At Peter's numb nod, Clint continued: "However, for the last year and a half you've been Spider-Man. I haven't seen you back down from a villain once. Hell, I saw the security footage at the Hydra base; you kicked their asses to get to Wanda. So, here's my brilliant theory: you think that everyone deserves to be protected, except yourself." 

"I don't need protection." 

"And the theory has been proven," Clint said. "You're not used to people looking after you, are you?" 

"I don't _need_ to be looked after," Peter gritted out. "I'm fine." 

"If you found out Wanda was letting herself get beat up every day, what would you do?" 

Peter sputtered. "That's different!" 

"How? How is it different?" Clint demanded. 

"Well, she...she's already put up with enough of that crap," Peter grumbled. 

"And you haven't?" 

"I can take it," Peter insisted. 

"So can Wanda." 

"But she--"

"Doesn't deserve it?" Clint interrupted. 

Peter glared at him. 

"Look, I know you're not going to suddenly get hit by a wave of self-love with one conversation," Clint said. "So consider this: we all feel like shit because we acted no better than those assholes who beat on you every day. Some would even say we were worse. This--the whole substitute teacher thing and blackmailing Flash--that's Natasha's way of trying to make things right. It's like Wanda's stress-baking; just humor her, okay?" 

Peter sighed. He knew when he was beat. "Fine." 

Clint gave a final nod. "Good. Now, keep your suit close. Those files Barnes lifted from Hydra were encrypted, and Tony's almost done with them. Feel like punching some bad guys?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	18. XVIII

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony finds out Bucky killed his parents.  
> It does not go well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter could also be called "How the ending of Civil War should have gone."

Clint and Peter arrived at Avengers Tower just as Tony started shooting at James. 

"What the hell?!" Clint demanded. The couch in the living room was turned over, James and Steve using it for cover. It and the walls were shredded with bullet holes. Tony was on the other side of the room, Iron Man suit on, all guns and repulsors on full blast. He couldn't go anywhere, though; Wanda had him contained in one of her shields. Given the amount of sweat on her forehead and how hard her muscles were trembling, she'd been doing it for a while. 

"Tony, stop, you know it wasn't him!" Steve shouted. 

"I saw the tape!" Tony roared, his voice screeching behind the Iron Man mask. He tried one of those little rockets and disappeared in the fire and smoke. Wanda groaned under the strain, but when the smoke cleared the shield was still there. Tony punched it. "Dammit, Maximoff!" 

"Tony, you're hurting her!" Peter cried, running into the room. 

"Then she should beat it!" 

"What is going on?" Clint snapped. 

"I killed his parents," Barnes muttered. 

"The Winter Soldier killed his parents," Steve insisted. 

Peter hissed. Oh, this was bad. 

Clint scratched the back of his head. "So...the good news is that you decrypted Hydra's files?" 

"How else do you think I found out?" Tony shot the shield again. Wanda dropped to her knees, still flaring crimson.

The wheels in Peter's mind were burning. He remembered the night Uncle Ben died, and the week that followed. How he couldn't even think about it without flying into a rage, never mind seeing him...

"Steve, get James out of here," Peter ordered. "Tony, get out of the suit, we'll talk about this." 

"There's nothing--" Punch. "--to talk--" Punch. "--about!" Punch. Wanda whimpered. Peter gritted his teeth. _Hold on, Wanda. You've got this..._

Steve grabbed James and pulled him from the room. Peter put himself directly in front of Tony, barely six inches between them. "Tony...you don't want to do this." 

"The hell I don't!" Grenade launcher. Explosion. 

Peter waited for the smoke to clear. He was very aware of Wanda quietly falling apart behind him, of Clint pulling a bow and quiver of arrows from seemingly nowhere, of the fact that if Tony did this he'd not only regret it for the rest of his life, Steve would never forgive him. It would tear the Avengers apart. 

Oh, wait. Backtrack. Clint...

"Tony," Peter said, "you've told me about the Chitauri invasion, right?" 

"What the hell does that have to do with--" 

"What exactly was Clint doing during that?" 

Clint stiffened. Tony paused. 

"From what I heard, he killed at least a dozen SHIELD agents," Peter continued. "Helped Loki get everything he needed to open up that wormhole to let in the alien army. Tried to kill Natasha..." 

"That wasn't his fault," Tony growled. "He was under Loki's control." 

"And how is that any different from James' being brainwashed, tortured and memory-wiped by Hydra?"

Tony glared at him. 

"Look, you're angry. I get it. You said you saw a tape so I imagine you just saw your parents being killed. You're still seeing it. Tony, you're not thinking straight," Peter pleaded. "You're not you." 

Tony started trembling. 

"You know that the real enemy is Hydra," Peter continued. "They're the ones responsible for killing your parents. That's who we need to focus on. We can't do that if we're killing our own teammates. So...get out of the suit, Tony. Please." 

Tony didn't move. 

"Tony, look at Wanda," Peter said quietly. "She's scared of you. She's hurting herself trying to stop you."

Tony looked at Wanda. His hands flexed. 

He pressed a button on his suit and it collapsed around him. 

Peter breathed a sigh of relief. The shield around Tony still hadn't dropped. Peter went to Wanda, who was huddled on the floor, eyes and hands red. Peter put his hands on her head and lifted her face. "Hey, Wanda. You can let go. He's not gonna hurt anyone, okay? It's safe." 

Wanda looked at him in confusion, before the red drained away. Clint set his weapons down and gently tugged Tony into the kitchen, onto a chair. 

"FRIDAY, where's Viz?" Peter asked. 

"Not in the building, Parker," she said. "Want me to call him?" 

"Yeah, tell him to get here ASAP. Wanda? Let's go to Vision's room, okay?" 

She nodded, but didn't move. "I don't think I can stand," she mumbled. 

"Is, uh...that's not normal, is it?" Tony asked, an edge of panic to his voice. 

Peter chuckled. "Actually, Wanda, remember the last time you practiced shielding?" 

"I passed out," she admitted. 

"Now you just have noodle-legs. You're getting stronger." Peter picked her up by the armpits until she was standing. "Still good?" 

She swayed, but nodded. "Still good." 

"Okay, let's get to your place. Viz'll probably give you a foot rub or tea or whatever grossly romantic thing he does." Peter supported her out of the room, stealing a glance at Tony on the way out. Clint had a hand on the engineer's shoulder and gave Peter a wink. 

"FRIDAY, tell Steve and James that it's safe," Peter said once they were in the elevator. "But James should stay away from Tony for a while. A month, at least. Unless Tony _explicitly_ asks to see him." 

"Got it," FRIDAY said. 

Peter got Wanda to Vision's room, where she collapsed on the couch. Then he went to the kitchen and whipped up some hot chocolate. It was the renowned cure for everything, after all. 

Wanda was dozing by the time he came back. She stirred and sat up, taking her drink. He sat next to her, finally letting himself relax since he stepped into the Tower. 

"You're shaking," Wanda said. 

Peter looked down at his hands. The liquid in his mug was sloshing around, almost spilling onto the carpet. He set the mug on the coffee table. 

"Did you know about Tony's parents?" Peter asked. 

She shook her head. "James and I haven't gotten to that memory yet. If we had, I would've taken him out of the Tower, kept him in my apartment or told Steve to take him to his." She curled around her mug. "He thinks he deserves to die." 

"James?" Peter asked, alarmed. 

She nodded. "Not enough to actually...try anything. But...there's a reason he stayed in the room, instead of running as soon as Tony was contained. This'll just make it worse." 

"Shit." 

"Mm-hm. I want to take it to Steve." 

"Good idea. Maybe Clint, too. If anyone can understand what James went through..." 

Wanda tipped her head in agreement. Then she grinned. "So...how was English class?" 

Peter groaned and dropped his face into a pillow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	19. XIX

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clint and Peter have a heart-to-heart.

Peter left for his own rooms once Vision arrived. He called Aunt May to tell her he was staying at the Tower for...a while. Technically, the Winter Soldier's kills were classified information. But Peter was tired of lying to the woman who was basically his mother, and told her everything. She listened quietly before saying, "I'm very proud of you, Peter. And Tony will be grateful, once he has his head on straight." 

Peter smiled, feeling his chest glow. 

He thought he'd be spending the rest of the afternoon and evening doing homework in his room, without seeing another soul. But he'd only finished two chapters out of his biology textbook when there was a knock on the door. 

"Yeah?" he called. 

Clint poked his head in the room. "Hey. Can I come in?" 

"Um, yeah." Peter set his book down. "How's Tony?" 

"Passed out drunk in his workshop, which is honestly the best outcome we could've hoped for. FRIDAY's keeping an eye on him. Nat and Thor heard about it, so they're coming back to help keep things under control." Clint pulled the chair from the desk to the bed and sat in it. "You, uh...that was really good. What you did out there." 

Peter shrugged, heat creeping up his face. "I just talked to him." 

"Yeah, and you're really the only person on this team who could've done that and gotten the results we did: no bloodshed, no fighting..." 

"Weren't there bullet holes in the wall?" 

"That happened before we got there. Look, my point is...good job." 

Peter snorted. "He just needs to cool off. And even then, he probably won't be able to even look at James without punching him a few times. Even if it wasn't his fault..." 

"Maybe." Clint gave him a shrewd look. "You're talking from experience." 

Peter swallowed. "Remember over the phone? You said that I was better or a good person or something because I didn't kill anyone." 

"Yeah..." 

"I'm not," Peter said. "If I'd found Nigel Smith before I did, I would have killed him. I almost did, anyway." 

Clint was quiet as Peter continued: "We were in someone's house; I saw him break in. I webbed him up in the kitchen and was trying to decide if I wanted to leave him there or take him to the cops--I mean, for all I knew the homeowners were in Asia or something and wouldn't be back for weeks. That's when I saw his arm. His sleeve was pulled up part way, so I only saw half the tattoo. I pulled it back and...there it was. I recognized it, and his face. He killed Uncle Ben. 

"And I really, really wanted to kill him, I mean..." Peter shook his head and snorted. "Wasn't sure whether I wanted to wrap him up in webs until he suffocated, or beat him to death, or maybe use one of the kitchen knives...I don't know, there were a lot of options. Beating him sounded like it'd be the most fun." 

"But you didn't," Clint said quietly. 

Peter shook his head. "I couldn't." 

"No, you could've. Killing is easy; I've done it plenty of times. _Not_ killing someone, especially when you really want to and are perfectly justified in doing it, that takes strength." Clint tipped his head. "Honestly, what I am surprised about it how you didn't kill Green Goblin. Smith didn't plan on killing your uncle; that was pure chance. Goblin, on the other hand..." 

"Yeah, he was gunning for Gwen," Peter said. He gave a watery laugh. "But Harry was my friend." 

Clint moved from the chair to the bed, right next to Peter, and put an arm around his shoulder. Peter stiffened on instinct, then leaned into him while Clint rubbed his back. He hadn't let his guard down like this around anyone, except Wanda. It felt weird and...good. 

"You told Barnes that you went into this with the resolve to not kill," Clint said. "Hold onto that, okay? Don't end up like Nat and me." 

"I kinda like how you guys ended up," Peter said. 

"Really? 'Cause when we joined a team of superheroes, there were these two members who we treated like shit..." 

"Eh, don't beat yourself up about it. S'not the worst thing to happen to us." Peter felt tired and droopy. It'd been a long, weird-ass day, and he hadn't caught a solid eight-hour chunk of sleep in...wow. He couldn't even remember. Taking a nap wouldn't be a bad idea, and Clint was really warm and comfortable...

But first, "Wanda and I think you should talk to James." 

Peter's eyes had drifted closed sometime earlier, so he didn't see Clint's face. Just heard him ask, "Why?" 

"'Cause he needs to talk to someone, and you're the only one who comes close to knowing about...that." 

"Okay. I'll call him tomorrow." Clint gently pried the textbook out of Peter's hands. It landed in a thump somewhere on the floor. Fingers were running through Peter's hair and massaging his scalp and it felt so good. "Get some sleep, kiddo." 

\--

"Is Steve around?" Peter asked, walking into the room. It was mid-morning on Saturday, 10:30am, Peter had gotten up only twenty minutes ago after eleven hours of sleep, and damn did that feel fine. 

Tony was in his workshop on a science binge (which nobody was going to protest, for once), James was still AWOL after the blowup two days ago (good), Thor was en route from visiting Jane, and Wanda and Vision were at their apartment (because the worry, anger, and grief everyone's minds were spewing was grinding on her nerves). So Bruce, Clint, and Natasha were the only ones in the general living room that morning. Clint was watching a movie, Natasha was reading, and Bruce was typing equations on a tablet. 

"No, he's sticking to James. I think they're in Brooklyn somewhere," Clint said, not looking up from the film. "Why?" 

Peter tried not to be disappointed. This was for the best, after all. "Eh, we'd planned on sparring today. That's okay, though. I can go one weekend without bruises." 

"No, you can't," Natasha said, closing her book. "Get to the gym. I'll be there in ten minutes." 

Peter paused. Blinked. "Uh...you're gonna...spar with me?" 

Natasha raised an eyebrow at him. "Afraid you're going to lose?" 

"Oh, I _know_ I'm going to lose. I just thought...you said..." Peter shook his head and smiled. "Yeah, sure. I'll see you down there." 

On the way, he texted Wanda: _Natasha just offered to spar with me. My last will and testament is under my mattress at Aunt May's._

Wanda texted back: _May the odds be ever in your favor. :P_

\--

Tony emerged from his workshop for coffee to find Peter on the couch in the living room. The kid was basically a giant bruise. 

"What happened to you?" Tony asked. 

"Natasha."

Tony paused. "What'd you do to Natasha?" 

"Nothing, man. She's my new sparring partner." 

Tony looked over the edge of the couch to get a closer look at Peter. "And you're still alive?" 

"Barely." 

"Do you want me to talk to Clint and get him to take over the lessons?" 

Peter grinned. "Absolutely not."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com


	20. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just to wrap up some loose ends...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for the monumental support! This is my first fanfic ever and I couldn't be happier with the results. Thank you.

As far as reconciliation methods went, destroying the last of the Hydra bases worked out pretty well for James and Tony. 

During the pancake dinner after, Tony looked up at James and said, "Your arm looks like shit. I'm making you a new one." 

"Fine," James said. 

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. 

\--

"Aunt May and I are heading out of state for Christmas, so I'm giving these to you now," Peter said, tossing everyone their Christmas presents. 

Tony had his opened first, and he laughed. "Is this payback?" 

"Hell yes." 

Steve was bright red as he held up his Captain America t-shirt. Natasha was a cross between amused and annoyed at the Black Widow logo. Clint and Thor were laughing. Vision was shaking his head with an amused smile while Wanda giggled. James glared at Peter, the Spider-Man t-shirt in his metal fingers. "Really?" 

Peter shrugged. "You haven't been an Avenger long enough to get your own logo, so you get to borrow mine." He grabbed his backpack. "I'm leaving now before you and Natasha decide to kill me. Bye!" 

\--

"That's it," Wanda said, her eyes going from scarlet to brown. "That's the last of the memories." 

James blinked to clear his head. "You're sure?" 

"Positive. Now I'm going to insist you go to therapy, or at least talk to Steve, because some of those were BAD."

"I know." James stood from the bed and hugged a very surprised Wanda. "Thank you." 

\--

"Spidey's been shot!" Clint shouted, firing an arrow at the shooter. 

"What?!" Wanda exploded--literally. Two dozen bad guys went flying.

"Spider-Man?" Steve called into the coms, praying for a response. He did not want to bury a teenager, or tell May that he was dead, or... 

"I'm okay," Peter coughed, to everyone's collective relief. "It's just an arm. I've got a spare." 

"I'm on him," Bucky said, rushing to where the teen had fallen. 

The mad scientist ducked under Steve's shield and scrambled to the doomsday device. He slapped a button and it whirled to life. "If I lift my hand, the entire city goes!" he warned. 

Webbing shot through the air and hit the villain's hand, pinning it to the machine. 

"Well, that works," Tony said, lowering to the floor. 

Steve immediately turned and went to where he'd seen Bucky and Peter disappear, Wanda right on his tail.

Peter was sitting on a lab table. Steve couldn't see his face, due to the mask, but given the boy's body language he was not amused. Bucky was poking around the bullet hole in his shoulder that was drenching his left arm in blood. 

Seeing Peter alive and well had Wanda relax considerably next to Steve. "He's okay," she said into the coms. 

"See, it's fine," Peter told Bucky. "I'll have the doctors stitch it up and it'll be good as new." 

"The bullet's still in there, squirt," Bucky said. "You'll need a bit of surgery, and probably a cast for a day or two."

Peter groaned. "But it's a school night!" 

"Pretty sure getting shot counts as 'fucked up,'" Clint said over the coms. "Call in a sick day." 

"Do I have to?" 

"Yes," Steve decided. 

Metal footsteps came from behind him. Steve turned just as Tony lifted his faceplate. "You okay, Spidey?"

"Yeah, the Kevlar took most of the damage," Peter said. "I admit it: this uniform you made me is _slightly_ better than my spandex." 

\--

"Tony? Bucky? Anyone?" Steve put a finger to his com, but all he got was static. "I can't reach anyone." 

"That EMP must've taken the coms off-line," Natasha said. 

Steve was about to suggest one of them find a cell phone, because they had to tell the rest of the team that their target had moved, when he felt a familiar tickle in the back of his mind, and suddenly, he was connected to everyone. Steve grinned. 

_*Everyone okay?*_ Wanda asked. 

"All right, I admit it," Natasha ground out. "That trick's starting to grow on me." 

\--

Steve found himself alone in the living room with Wanda, him sketching while she flipped through a cookbook. 

"Wanda?" he asked. 

"Hm?" 

"Are you still thinking about leaving?" 

She paused, then smiled at him. "No." 

\--

"God dammit," Peter grumbled, his uniform only halfway off as he sat on the bench in the Avengers' locker room at three in the morning. 

"Do you wish for help, Peter?" 

Peter jumped. "Jesus, Thor! For a god of thunder, you can be freakishly quiet!" 

"My apologies," Thor said, holding up his hands. "It's difficult to get undressed with a sprained wrist. Allow me to help, please." 

Peter sighed. Was it embarrassing to have someone help him out of uniform, down to his undies, and then into his jammies (because there was no way he was going back to Aunt May's this late at night with a busted wrist)? Yes, absolutely. But he'd already been at this for ten minutes and the sleep deprivation was not helping. 

"Yeah, sure," he mumbled. "Thanks." 

Thor briskly got the uniform off and sweatpants and a t-shirt on. Peter hissed when he bumped his wrist against Thor, who mumbled an apology. When Peter was squared away, he bundled up his uniform under his good arm for the wash. "Thor, can I ask you something?" 

"Of course." 

Peter hesitated. "Before...when I first started here, you didn't...seem thrilled about me being here. But you've been different for the last few months. Why?" 

Thor paused. He pulled Peter's mask from the bundle of soiled uniform and held it out. "On Asguard, only cowards and villains wear masks, to avoid facing the consequences of their actions. I didn't realize the customs on Midguard were different." 

"They're...they're really not." Peter took the mask back. He tried for a smile. "I'm definitely not a villain, so you can rest easy." 

"You're not a coward, either," Thor said firmly. 

Peter's smile slipped. "Aren't I? I didn't want my life as Peter Parker to be affected by Spider-Man. Isn't that the same as avoiding the consequences?" 

"Not wearing the mask endangers your friends and family," Thor pointed out. "If those are the consequences to be avoided, then by all means, wear the mask."

Peter snorted. "Oh, yeah, great job I've done protecting them. You know they're all dead except for Aunt May, right?" 

"Only one villain knows of your name and family, and he's imprisoned," Thor said. "Your aunt may be your only family right now, but what of the future? You won't be mourning Lady Gwen forever; you'll fall in love again. Shouldn't that person be protected? You're searching for a college, where it's inevitable for you to find at least a handful of comrades. They'll be better protected by your mask than any armed guards SHIELD or Stark could come up with." Thor took hold of Peter's shoulders, forcing him to look at him. "Cowards don't risk their lives to fight evil. Cowards don't defend the weak and innocent, they defend the strong. Cowards don't put their loved ones before themselves. NOTHING you have done is cowardice, mask or no mask." 

Peter was gripping the Spider-Man mask so tight his hand was shaking. Any words he might've said were lodged in the wet lump in his throat. 

Thor gently tugged him out of the locker room. "Come. You need to rest." 

\--

Hulk likes Red. 

He got scared the first time she whispered in his head. He'd smashed some Bad Things and ended up far away from the others, and then heard her whispering even though she wasn't there.

 _*It's okay, it's okay,*_ she soothed. _*I'm not going to hurt you. Lullaby just wants to know that you're safe.*_

And Hulk saw a picture of Lullaby standing on a small pile of rubble, looking worried. 

"Hulk safe," he growled. 

"He's safe," someone in the picture said, and Lullaby relaxed. 

_*There's more bad guys in the city,*_ Red said in his head. _*Lullaby, Spidey and I are going after them. Would you like to come?*_

Hulk felt a tug in his head, and he followed it until he was with Lullaby and Spidey and Red and a whole lot of Bad Things.

So now, Hulk likes Red. She sits in his head and tells him where squishy Bad Things are hiding. 

\--

"Hold on just a damn minute," Peter said. "How the _hell_ have you not see _Casablanca_?"

Steve shrugged. "It must've come out after I hit the ice. Why? Is it a good movie?" 

"No," Tony said the same time Peter exclaimed, "Duh! It's a classic!" 

"I didn't know you were into romance movies," Bruce commented. 

"Wanda got me hooked." Peter pointed to Steve. "SHIELD should've put this right up there with 'How to use Google' and classic rock. We're watching this." 

"Hold on, Thor and Jane might want to watch something different," Clint said, just as the elevator doors opened. 

"I think I saw it in the 1970s," James said. "'This is the beginning of a beautiful friendship'?"

"Yes!" Peter cheered. "See? The brainwashed, memory-wiped soldier saw it." 

"I thought it was overrated." 

"Aw, come on!" 

James shrugged. "I'll sit through it again, but I'll bitch about it with Tony through the whole thing. Just saying."

"I vote for _Casablanca_ ," Vision said. 

"That's because your girlfriend voted for it," Tony grumbled. 

"I also vote _Casablanca_ ," Nat said. 

"What?!" 

"It's one of my favorites," she defended. 

"Smart girl," Wanda said, plopping on the seat next to Vision and curling up next to him.

"What is this _Casablanca_?" Thor asked, his arm around Jane's shoulder. 

Peter sputtered. "Jane! How could you not show this to him? He's an alien _and_ your boyfriend! It should've been one of the first things you guys did!" 

Jane gave him a look. "Because I haven't even seen it." 

Peter stared at her, as if she'd grown another head. Tony snickered. "You're not missing much." 

"Tony, shut up. Jane, Thor, sit." Peter plugged the movie in and plopped on the couch between Clint, who had the popcorn, and Wanda, who stole handfuls of popcorn with her powers. 

Five hours, three movies, and several arguments about the quality of romance movies later, Jane had to take a phone call from Darcy. When she came back, all of the Avengers were asleep. Steve and Bucky were on beanie bag chairs on the floor in front of Tony, who was snoring on the loveseat. Thor was on the smaller sofa, stretched out to occupy the space Jane had vacated. Bruce and Natasha were on the floor wrapped in blankets. Clint was curled around the bowl of popcorn and the jewel in Vision's forehead had a soft golden glow. 

In the center of all of them was Peter and Wanda, right at home. 

 

END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, check out some of my original work! http://www.dzamarie.com

**Author's Note:**

> If you like this, check out my blog "Dragons, Zombies & Aliens" and original work at www.dzamarie.com


End file.
